Shit, shit, shit! I thought. This can NOT be happening right now.
"DANIEL!" I yelled. "Where are the rest of the Murphy files?" My desk was an obscene mess. I had depositions, statements, folders...everything you could imagine for this stupid case was lying about and the one thing I needed was nowhere to be found. I'm never this unorganized in my private life...why was my public life always in shambles?
"Coming, coming," Daniel said as he hurriedly scuffled through my door. "Here are the files AND here's some coffee," he said with a smile.
"Daniel...you're a Godsend. Thank you so much. What did you get from the press?"
"Oh besides the fact that they all love you and think you're going to save the city from every perp on the street and you're the best damn district attorney the world has ever seen...not much."
This is why I loved Daniel so much. He was the best assistant I could have ever hoped for. He was fresh out of college, terribly ambitious and really willing to go places with me, professionally. As a matter of fact, if I didn't have him working with me on this case, which happened to be wickedly high-profile, I would have definitely crashed and burned already. I had a great reputation with my peers, the press and, most importantly, the public. I couldn't afford a failure at such a great point in my life.
Aside from the fact that I was comfortably reassured that this case was going to go off without a hitch, I was still bothered by why my "real job"...at least in my head...was going down the toilet. Everything was going so well at The House. Everyone was happy, the girls have never brought in such business and it seemed that everything was just booming. I guess I had a lot to owe to Daniel. I started thinking I should probably take him out to dinner or something. I definitely need to show him my appreciation for all he'd been doing.
It was 8:15 by the time I took my eyes off the case files and looked at the clock. Daniel was getting some dinner and I decided that when he came back, we should probably pack it in for the night. I had some more book-cooking to do at The House and needed to find time for that and sleep...a rare commodity these days.
"Who wants leftover pad thai?!?!" Daniel said, enthusiastically.
I laughed. He was such a character. "No thanks, hon. We need to be done with all this for now anyway."
"But it's only a little after eight and I know damn well we both don't have lives."
Speak for yourself! I thought.
"Yeah, I know...but I think we owe it to ourselves to get outta here. We've both been working really hard and..."
He cut me off. "Listen, Lis'...you go home and take care of whatever. I'll stay here and finish what little I have to do."
"Daniel," I said, "I'd bet any amount that you've been working harder on this than I have and who's the D.A. here? Go home. At least have a beer while you're not having a life."
"No, no. I better finish up here so I have the weekend alllll to myself." Daniel shot me this wicked looking smile like he had something up his sleeve.
"Okay, okay...go ahead." I said, probing for answers.
"What?" he said, coyly.
I said, "You have something going on this weekend...and from the looks of your face, it's good."
"Hey, hey....don't play fancy lawyer with me. I don't have to tell you anything!" He paused. "Okay, but I'm dying to tell you. Promise you won't judge or say anything to anybody?"
"Danny, you can trust me with anything. It can't be anything worse than things I've already heard."
Daniel got up from his chair and scooted it really close to my desk across from me. He leaned in as if he really had some big secret. I gotta be honest...I was intrigued. I LOVE big secrets especially if they take my mind off my own.
"Okay," he started in, "Now...this may be illegal or whatever but I don't care. So one night, my buddy and I are drinkin', right? We get to talking and he mentions this weekend where he went to this one house on the edge of town. Totally freaky shit."
The hairs on my neck started to stand up on end. This wouldn't happen to be my house on the edge of town, would it?
"Uh huh," I said...half-ready to throw up.
"There are, like, all these chicks there and they will do anything to you. ...and Lisa...when I say anything, I mean anything. Like...whips and shit like that."
Oh fuck.
"Like...bondage stuff?" I'm really bad at playing dumb.
"Yeah!"
"Daniel," I said, nearly stuttering, "that sounds...awful."
My throat was getting dry. Oh God, I thought. Am I blushing? No...I'm turning white. Oh shit. He's gonna ask what's wrong. Play along, stupid! PLAY ALONG!
"Pfsh," he said. "Awful my ass! So I look into this place, right? The lady that runs the whole thing is out of her fucking mind but she's good at what she does...like...really good. Like...my buddy wouldn't stop talking about her. THAT good. So I'm gonna go see them this weekend. I'm so excited I could explode!!"
This wasn't happening. Oh God...if Marisa already took the call to schedule it, then it's already in the books...and that means someone has been assigned to Daniel...or it could mean that he requested "the lady out of her fucking mind"....otherwise known as me. Maybe I could coerce him out of it.
"Well, you know...those places could get you in lots of trouble with your job. I mean...I won't say anything but if anybody ever found out..."
"Lisa, Lisa, Lisa," he interrupted. "You don't get it. This is a guy thing. I know it would be a great stress-reliever for me and you're forgetting, boss lady, that I'm not in the public eye. Hell, I'm pretty sure you're the only one who knows I exist. I got this."
Okay, Lisa. I thought. You lost this one. Can't punish the kid for tenacity.
"Just be careful, Danny. You never know what really goes on in places like that."
"Like I said, Lis'...I'm a big boy. I can hold my own."
So Danny Boy can hold his own, can he? I knew I had to make my way to The House quickly so I could get all this straightened out.
* * *
I don't know how I made it to The House alive seeing as how I broke just about every traffic law known to man. I parked in my usual spot, took my secret path to The House and entered in the back door that only I had the key to. I went up the usual rickety spiral staircase to my room and put down my things. I ran over to my bed and just flopped down. What was I gonna do? Daniel was going to be in my house this weekend and I'm his fucking boss! ...but what a minute. This isn't so bad, right? I mean...if this is what he truly wants then I should really give it to him especially since I had been looking for a way to thank him for all his hard work. This wasn't bad at all. It was perfect! I could feel myself start to get more and more excited thinking about all this. I had to go find the appointment book to make sure who was assigned.
I got out of my work clothes and took my hair out of its usual bun. I gathered it in a low ponytail and found some nice clothes to wear. Nothing fancy...just a nice, simple black dress. It was nighttime and I was tired from work. I just wanted to relax tonight. I found some nice black flats to wear and I decided on a black and gold mask for this evening. It didn't say much to me so I don't think it would say much to anyone else, which is just what I wanted.
I excitedly pranced down the central staircase to find the appointment book and met one of my girls, Elise, on the stairs. I hadn't seen much of Elise since we had our little tryst last month and it was good to see her.
"Elise!" I said with probably way too much excitement in my voice. "How are you?"
"Hi, Mother!" said Elise. She gave me a great big hug. My little gem. "I haven't seen you in forever!"
"I know, I know...I've been crazy busy. How's school?"
"Just fine. I actually have a big test tomorrow so I'm gonna go to bed. It was...really good to see you, Mother."
I smiled. "Thank you, dear. It was good to see you, too. Good luck on the test!"
She smiled that smile that intoxicates me so much and ran up the stairs to her room. Whatever Daniel was hoping to get out of this house, I knew one thing was for sure. Elise was off limits to him.
I walked down to the sitting room where the appointment book is at and I immediately flipped to the Saturday/Sunday page.
"Mr. Boggs, 11:30-12:30...heh!" I laughed. "Lunch break."
I loved looking at the appointment book because you could so easily tell how people are fitting us into their schedule. Lunch breaks, golfing days, late nights...my clients were amusing even without seeing them. Men are such opportunistic creatures of habit.
"Mr. Clifton, Mr. Kent, Mr. Newarth..." I said aloud. "Where the fuck is Mr. Connor?!"
"What'd you say, Mother?"
"OH!" I said, startled. It was Marisa. She had just come in from the kitchen. "You scared me!"
"Oh, I'm sorry, Mother. I didn't mean to," she said with a smile.
Marisa was probably the most lively girl I have in the house. She's energetic about everything and she loves working for me. She's Puerto Rican and has the most amazing mocha-colored skin. She's very short...about five foot three...and has short brown hair which completely matches her personality. She's mostly dominant and I've sat in on one of her sessions when I first hired her. She plays around with her submissives and has so much fun. She doesn't talk down to anyone....she just plays with them like they are two five-year-olds in a playroom.
"So what are you doing?" she said inquisitively.
"Looking through the appointments. You haven't gotten a call from a Daniel Connor today, have you?"
She looked up at the ceiling lost in thought. "Connor....yes. He's a Saturday...Saturday night! Yep! I took the call earlier today."
Finally! I thought. "So you didn't assign anyone to him, right?"
"No," she said looking perplexed, "I didn't get to write him in yet. Why?"
"I'm gonna take this one," I said.
"But, Mother...doesn't that have to be approved?"
"Who does the approvals, Marisa?" I said.
She laughed and got a little red in the face. "You do," she said.
"I happen to know this one. I need to take it." I said.
"All right! He's all yours!" she said and took the appointment book from me to pencil him in.
It was all settled now. I was going to see Daniel in my house on my terms. I couldn't believe it was happening. I was excited, I was nervous and I was scared shitless. I knew, however, once I placed him in the dungeon, I would relax. That was, after all, MY playroom. I am God in that room. Nothing could possibly go wrong.
* * *
It was about twenty minutes before Daniel was due to arrive and I was soaking in the bath in my room. I didn't care if he had to wait, even though I desperately wanted to be the one to greet him at the door. The waiting is all part of the fun. You get scared when you're about to get your ass beaten and you have to wait for it but hey...you paid for it...you're definitely going to get all that comes with what you paid for.
I had a glass of temperanillo sitting on the floor next to the bath, the candles were lit and I had my eyes closed sinking into the warm water, the scented bubbles and the music playing in the background. Life could not be any more perfect than at that moment. It had to end, though, because as I had mentioned, I really wanted to greet Daniel at the door. He usually runs about five minutes later than the rest of the world anyway and he was probably at a bar drinking some courage before coming here. If what he had heard is what actually goes on in here sometimes, he had more than enough to worry about.
I got out of the bath and dried off. My hair was already curled and pinned back to one side. I had done my hair earlier and made sure to not get it wet. I was nervous and needed to do something to get my mind off of things. I chose a short black skirt to wear over seamed stockings and found a black silk blouse with short, slightly puffy sleeves. I pretty much exclusively wore black at the house because it made me feel more powerful. I put some black eye shadow on and then....the hardest part. Time to choose a mask.
I had so many, I didn't ever know what to pick. I didn't want to scare Daniel but anybody wearing a mask is bound to look scary. It can't be helped. I decided to wear the first mask I ever bought. It showed my vulnerability and the fact that I could still feel compassion. One half was black, the other white. It was a woman's face but the black side was sad and had a tear under the eye whereas the white side was happy with black lips curled upward in a demure smile. It was an interesting face to present but I like my masks to show how I feel since I don't have a face to my clients. Today, my face said to me "I am really another person. A person who is sad, but I get to be happy for the next hour or so." I had hoped that would come across to Daniel. I stepped back and looked at myself in my full length mirror. I looked really good. Time for a pair of nice long leather gloves and high heels and then I would truly be ready.
When I am wearing all this stuff, it's really like a costume and I feel like I assume the role as Kathryn. Lisa dies, Kathryn is born. It's a hard duality but it's also relieving. Once my mask is on, I am Lisa no more. Kathryn gets to have her say. Mother gets to give orders...and right now, I was VERY ready to dominate Daniel. I couldn't wait to see his reaction to me. He knows Lisa Townshend. He's never met Kathryn Avery...but he was sure as hell about to.
* * *
Twenty minutes after 10, the doorbell rang. Daniel's appointment was for 10 so it had to be him. I had been sitting on the stairs for a while with my head in my hands trying to settle down...but it had to be Daniel. I perked up and practically jumped off the staircase all the while fumbling with my shirt and skirt to make sure they were both straight and perfect. I clumsily ran to the door and looked through the peephole.
It was him.
Play the part, I thought. Be Kathryn, Lisa. Be Kathryn.
I mustered up all the confidence I could and opened the door.
"Good evening, Mr. Connor," I said in my best "Mistress" voice.
He didn't say anything. His mouth was agape and he was just standing there looking at me. I kind of figured that was going to happen. I know Danny very well. I, personally, didn't think he was ready for this, but he wanted it and I aim to please.
"You know," I said, breaking the silence, "When someone says good evening to you, it's often viewed as polite to say something back along the same lines." Oh, I was on fire! "Something like...good evening, Madam or so good to meet you, Madam..."
Nothing. Daniel was just staring at me. I almost started laughing but had to maintain the fortitude that I've worked so hard for Kathryn to have.
"Well, since we are dispensing with formalities, perhaps you should just come inside and relax," I said and stuck out my hand for Daniel to take. He, reluctantly, put his hand in mind and I led him in to the main hall. Shutting the door behind me, I put my hand back in Daniel's and walked him over to the sitting room. This is where we—my girls and I, along with our clients—discuss important things like boundaries, safe words...stuff like that.
Daniel sat down on the couch with his eyes still fixated on me. I thought it best to address the elephant in the room.
"Mr. Connor, why do you keep staring at me?"
"Um...," said Daniel. He shook his head a little and said, "I didn't know that, um...," he looked down at the floor. This was honestly the first time I've seen Daniel shy.
"Do I frighten you?" Do I frighten you? What are you, a villain? Seem more human! I thought. "What I mean to say is...I don't mean to scare you if you're scared." I decided it best to sit next to him on the couch. I put my hand on his knee. Perhaps it was time for a pre-session heart-to-heart.
Daniel was studying me. He practically hadn't taken his eyes off me since I answered the door. Perhaps my presence was something that he didn't want to experience. I had to get him to talk somehow.
"Mr. Connor, I can see that you're obviously scared and nervous, but please don't be. We're here to take care of you and I, personally, am going to see to it that you have the best time here tonight, but you must talk to me. "
There was nothing. He was just staring at the floor. Something was really wrong here! Maybe this wasn't going to happen tonight. It wouldn't be the first time, but I honestly wanted Daniel to taste a little piece of my life. I decided to try a warmer approach.
"You've never done anything like this before, have you?"
Daniel looked at me with tears in his eyes. I could feel myself getting choked up just looking at him!
"What's wrong, Daniel?" I asked.
"It's just that...," he squeaked, "I don't think I should be here. I thought I knew what I was getting myself into but...you...this house...it's too much, I think. I should go."
He started to get up but I took his hand and sat him back down.
"Listen. You obviously wanted to come see what we're about and maybe try to experience something you've never felt before. You're here for all the right reasons. Fuck the wrong reasons. There aren't any. Your heart brought you to me, Daniel. There's nothing to be afraid of and, more importantly, there's nothing to be ashamed of. Do you know how many people I see in a week who are in a worse position than you? Everyone who comes here is looking for some kind of escape and I am so blessed that I get to provide them with some form of release, be it physical or mental. What do you want to happen tonight? Do you want to walk out that door without experiencing anything and walking away empty or do you want to feel something that you've never felt before that could make you feel alive? The choice is yours."
He looked at me and smiled. I was pretty sure I had gotten through to him.
"So are we going to have fun tonight?"
He chuckled a little. "Yeah. I really do want this. What do I call you?"
I could see there was no need to be a hardass tonight. "You can call me Kathryn and I am very pleased that you're going to stay. I'll be attending to you tonight unless you want someone else."
"No...I want you," he said.
"Great. Is there anything we need to discuss before we get started? Boundaries? Anything you're not comfortable with? Anything you do or don't want to experience?"
"Just....do what you do," he said.
This was all shocking me immensely. I had never seen this side of Daniel before and it was wonderful. I felt like he was a wounded man that I needed to heal and I loved that feeling. I didn't even feel like his boss anymore. I was so melted into Kathryn at that point that I didn't even feel like I knew him as well as I did. All I knew was that I was going to make sure Daniel had a good story to tell his boss on Monday.
"Then you're ready," I said. "Shall we make for the dungeon?"
Daniel nodded and smiled. I held out my hand for him to take and he excitedly grabbed it this time. I led him down those beautiful, haunting stairs to my dungeon. The chandeliers were flickering and half-illuminating the intentionally intact cobwebs in the corner. It was so creepy down there. I was getting VERY excited.
I sat Daniel down on the bench in the room and asked the same question I asked everybody. "Okay. How do you feel? What do you see?"
Daniel looked at me, grinning. "I'm really turned on right now. I don't know what I want. Just do what you want to me."
What a hungry response! I didn't actually know what I wanted to do to Daniel but, since we do have a relationship....even if it's one that he wasn't currently aware of....I decided that rope would be the best option. I find it very safe and intimate to be bound with rope...but that didn't mean that I couldn't be a little rough. Daniel wouldn't break. I knew him too well.
I grabbed a bit of hair from the back of his head and yanked him off the bench. I marched him over to the bed and threw him down on the mattress.
"Take all your clothes off," I said. It was show time.
He quickly began to unbutton his pants and threw them off to the side. He slipped off his T-shirt, underwear, shoes and socks and tossed them alongside his pants. He stood at the side of the bed, naked and staring at me.
"Thank you, Mr. Connor. Lie down on your stomach with your head on the pillow."
He did as he was told and laid facedown right in the middle of the bed. I thought I would start him off with a hogtie as they are my favorite.
I grabbed some rope from one of the hooks on the wall and immediately started folding it in half as I walked toward the bed. "I'm going to start you off with a hogtie. I assume you've never been tied up before. Am I correct?"
"Yes, Kathryn," he said, somewhat breathless.
"Hands behind your back."
He immediately moved his arms behind his back and crossed his hands at the wrist. Seeing how obedient he was, I thought I should push him later to see if he becomes less so. Obedience is great but I do love fighters.
I secured his wrists together and picked up his feet and crossed them at the ankles. I made sure to make the tie nice and tight for his first time. I wanted him to experience, not only the feeling of being bound, but the feeling of discomfort that you can't do anything about.
"Okay. Move around. Tell me how you feel."
He started to wiggle around a bit and let out a few little groans as he struggled. "It's...uh...pretty uncomfortable...but it's nice."
"Good," I said. I hooked my hand under the ropes securing his wrists and pulled him up so he was kneeling. "Turn toward me, " I commanded and, with some effort, he managed to turn and face me. Now for a little humiliation, I thought.
I took my gloves off and tossed them on the floor. "Open," I said. Daniel just looked at me confused. "Daniel, open."
"Open...what?" he said.
FINALLY a reason to get "angry." I grabbed his cock and squeezed as hard as I could. He opened his mouth with a strong gasp. I stuck my thumb in his mouth and grabbed his cheek and, with the other hand, I started slapping his other cheek repeatedly and, of course, firmer with every strike. "When I say 'open,' Mr. Connor, you must open your mouth which, of course, is the only thing you CAN open."
"Owwwwww!" he cried as I continued hitting him.
"Open your mouth wide, Daniel. You will take this, you will appreciate this and you will thank me for this."
"Owwwwww thank youuu.....ohhhhh thank you," he said with tears in his eyes.
I stopped slapping his face. "Good boy. ....and you are very welcome. I think you need a little discipline and training, though, don't you?"
"What do you mean?" he said.
I wedged my thumb back in his mouth and continued hitting his face, which was very red already. It was obviously very tender as well because Daniel was wincing and crying as I continued. I figured it was best that Daniel couldn't tell I was enjoying myself immensely. I was grinning so hard MY cheeks were starting to hurt, although not nearly as bad as his were.
"You need to learn to stop asking me questions. All you know is the word 'yes.' Whatever I tell you to do, you do it without question. Whenever I ask if you want something, you will want it without thinking. I am so generous and kind to you, after all. Why wouldn't I give you everything you've always wanted?"
I could tell this was getting to be truly painful for him so I decided to be nice and stop for the moment but only if he decided to play my little game with me. "Daniel, the only word you know is 'yes.' Say it."
Through tears, he managed to say "yes."
I stopped slapping him and patted him on the head. "That's a good boy. So, you're in need of some discipline?"
"Yes."
"Excellent. See? You're learning already! Isn't this fun?"
He looked at me and laughed a little. "Yes," he said with a smile.
"This will be nice. You'll love it. Now, how are those ropes feeling?"
Daniel looked at me, then looked at the ground...then at the wall...then back at me. ".....yes?"
Honest to God, I don't think I've ever laughed so hard in my entire life. He started laughing, too. I could already tell this was going to turn out to be my favorite session I've ever participated in. Nothing had to be so serious. "Daniel, you can speak freely, it's okay."
"I'm sorry, Kathryn."
"No, no, no...don't be," I said, wiping away a tear from my eye. "Christ, Daniel, we're all human. If you can't laugh, you don't know how to live. Come on, I'll get you out."
I started to untie him while he was still kneeling and he rested his head on my chest as I did so. It was kind of nice to feel this different connection with Daniel. He was melting into me, I felt. It was like he really depended on me to make this a night worth remembering. It was certainly going well so far!
When he was released from his bonds, I had him get off the bed and I led him over to one of my most favorite devices, my St. Andrew's Cross. I attached him to the cross and went over to my dresser to get a gag. This particular gag was like a medical gag in that it kept your mouth propped open as opposed to sealed off.
I went over to Daniel with the gag behind my back to see if he would get my command without clueing in.
"Open," I said.
Daniel opened his mouth wide for me and stared straight ahead. I was VERY impressed! I put the gag in his mouth and secured the ties behind his head. "Very good, Daniel. This gag is also going to train you to keep your mouth open. Do you understand?"
He nodded.
"Now you may become distracted and want to close your mouth. If I have not commanded you to close your mouth and you do so, I will not be very nice to you. Is that clear?"
He nodded again.
"Are you ready to begin your training?"
"Uh huh," he said.
I grabbed a simple flogger from the wall and started whipping Daniel across his torso. I love whipping and flogging people because I like to make little patterns all over. Soon enough, without fail, my little red lines started to appear all over and Daniel was becoming more and more sensitive. This was just to warm him up.
He was starting to let out sharp "uh's" now and I knew that when I started the actual training, he was going to be suffering for sure. This was all for him, though. I needed to see that he really wanted to try and to succeed at this. This wasn't for everybody but hey...he works for me. He can prove his loyalty to me this way.
"Do you think you can handle this without the gag in your mouth?" I said after a few minutes.
"Uh huh."
"Would you like to try?"
He nodded with a sharp gasp as I struck my final blow.
"Good!" I said cheerfully.
I walked over to Daniel and removed the gag. He immediately closed his mouth and I was watching him like a hawk to see if he would...and he did. I grabbed his cock again and squeezed even harder than before.
"Did I tell you to close your fucking mouth?" I said through clenched teeth.
"Owwwwww noooo!!!"
I started pulling on his cock now. He almost howled from the pain.
"Then I suggest you open it and keep it open, is that perfectly clear Mr. Connor?"
"Yes, yes, yes," he said, panting.
I let go of his penis and went to the drawer to get a ball stretcher and some weights. I said I wasn't going to be nice if he disobeyed me. More often than not, when you're playing little games like this with a dominant, they are waiting in high anticipation for you to fuck up. I didn't necessarily want Daniel to fuck up but I do like to play "bad cop" as well.
I picked out a leather "parachute," as it was called, and two .5 lb weights to attach to the two little chains that hung down. I snapped it on Daniel and attached the weights at the same time and, holding the parachute in my hand, slowly let it down. From the surprised look on Daniel's face, I could tell it was an interesting sensation for him, and probably not "good" interesting, but he needed to know that I can flip from nice to nasty in no time flat.
I looked Daniel over and he really looked fantastic...tied to the St. Andrew's Cross, ball stretcher dangling down behind his swollen cock, little red lines marking his torso, sweat beading everywhere and that lovely mouth of his wide open as instructed. I was pleased. Very, very pleased.
I said to him, "Daniel, this is your final test and then I'll give you a reward if you're good. You are instructed to keep that mouth of yours open while I put you through a rigorous test. Are you ready?"
"Uh huh," he said.
"Okay." I got a single-tail whip from the wall and started whipping Daniel. For those who don't know, single-tails are not easy to endure. They are sharp and they sting like hell. Moreover, they are hard for most to stand for a long period of time. We were going to go about ten minutes.
I started whipping him on his torso because I knew it was already somewhat sensitive from the flogger. He was wincing but he was doing all right. About two minutes in and I was whipping him all over. I could tell it was getting to be very painful for him, but his mouth remained open.
About six minutes in, Daniel was screaming and trying to move away from me. I just whipped him harder.
At about eight minutes, he had gone completely silent, which I found a little odd, but I brushed it off. I said, "Two more minutes. Can you go two more minutes?"
No response.
"Daniel...can you go two more minutes for me?"
He just looked at me blankly. It was then that I was wondering if something was going wrong. His eyes seemed dead...like they lost their glow. I immediately threw the whip on the floor. It would seem playtime was over.
"Daniel? Daniel are you okay?"
He softly exhaled and kept staring at me. I knew I had to get him down. I quickly unsnapped the parachute and let it drop to the floor. I undid his ankles and wrists and he flopped down in my arms. He was such dead weight at that point that it took all my strength to not fall. I kicked off my shoes and walked Daniel over to the bed. Once I got him situated, I ran out the door and up the stairs. I was in panic mode. I have never, ever pushed anybody past their limits. What the hell did I do to Daniel?
"Marisa? Elise? Anybody??"
Marisa dashed out of the living room. "Mother, what is it??"
"It's Daniel downstairs," I said out of breath. "He's not doing well, we need to watch him."
"Oh my God," she said. "Should we call a doctor over here?"
"No, not yet," I said.. "Let's just wait five minutes. Then we will. We gotta get down there."
We ran down the stairs and I got Daniel some water from the bathroom across the hall from the dungeon while Marisa went right to him to see if he was okay.
"Mother, come here!" Marisa said. It didn't sound good.
I ran over to the bed. "Daniel? Dan..." I stopped, clutched at my heart and sighed. He was awake and smiling. I said, "Oh my God, Daniel, you scared the shit out of me. Marisa, thank you so much. You can go."
Marisa looked at me, smiled and left. I looked down at Daniel. He looked like hell but at least he was alive and well. I gave him a cup of water and he drank it quickly. I had to know what happened.
"Did I push you too hard? What went wrong?"
He slowly blinked and turned his head toward me. "The pain," he said. He sounded like he just woke up from a thousand-year nap.
"It was too painful? I'm so sorry, I didn't..."
"No," he said. "No, it was so good. I just...faded into it. You know?"
I smiled, relieved. "Yeah, I know. It's called subspace. Not a lot of people can get there. You should consider yourself lucky."
"I feel lucky....I feel drunk!" He laughed as did I.
"Well you sure scared the crap out of me. Would you like to continue with the session or would you like to call it a day?"
In the same stuporous voice, he said, "No, no, lady. You owe me....big time."
I laughed. "That I do, Mr. Connor. That I do."
He was right. It was time for his reward.
I was just about to get up and get some lube so he could get himself off and he said, "Wait, wait...where are you going?"
"I'm going to give you your reward. You can masturbate. You've earned it."
He said, "No...you. You do it."
I smiled and said, "Mr. Connor...I know you've just been through a lot but I just don't do that. I'm sorry."
He said, "I have a request then. You might not like it. You might think it's okay. ...but either way, you owe me."
I sat next to him on the bed. "What, exactly, do I owe you Mr. Connor?"
"The...thing. Off."
"....you mean....my mask?" I said. Oh yeah right! Like that was gonna fucking happen!
"Yep. Off."
"Mr. Connor, don't you think there's a reason why I wear it in the first place?"
He was insistent. "I don't care if you're deformed or if you were just trying to scare me. Take it off. I want to see your face! You owe me!"
"Daniel, I don't owe you shit." I was getting mad. "I do not take this off for anyone. Not for you, not for the Pope, not for the President...no one."
"Why? What are you hiding? Look, Kathryn, I..." he paused and looked away.
"What? What is it?" I said, obviously annoyed.
"It took all my courage to come in here. I get shit on every day of my life. I get shit on at work, I get shit on here. All I want is one simple thing and you can't give it to me? I fucking paid you!"
"....you get shit on at work?" I don't treat you like crap! What the hell are you talking about? I thought.
"Yes. I do. I do all the fucking work around that place and I'm not appreciated at all. Not ONE thank you ever. ...and now I can't even get what I paid for. Great."
"Daniel," I said, feeling like absolute shit, "I know you're frustrated. ...but if I took this off, I would lose everything. Everything, Daniel."
"I won't tell a soul," he said with a smile.
I don't know what possessed me to do it, but I slowly, carefully removed my mask. For the first time, I revealed myself to a client....to anyone! I looked at Daniel with tears in my eyes. I couldn't say a word. I just smiled and shrugged and began to cry.
He looked back at me with a smile. "I always knew it was you."
