Surrender

by Kitty Thomas

  "I'm sorry you were in pain, but I'm very pleased with you."

  She seemed to relax another fraction. Whether it was from his words, the warmth of the bath loosening tight muscles, or his hands kneading out the knots he couldn't be sure.

  "I-is it going to be like this all the time?" she asked.

  "Like what?"

  "Painful."

  He chuckled. "No. Most of the time it won't be. Even when I play with you with things that you think should be painful, it won't be like you think. I promise."

  They sat in silence for several minutes. The only sound disturbing the silence was Julie's fingertips trailing back and forth through the water.

  When the water had cooled, Gabe pulled the plug on the drain and helped her out of the tub. He dried her and led her back into the bedroom and guided her to sit on the edge of the bed.

  He crossed to the dresser and retrieved the black velvet box that contained the gold collar and returned to sit beside her. She seemed to barely breathe as she stared at the box. Her hand crept out to stroke the velvet on top, then she looked up at him, unsure.

  "My collar?"

  "Yes. And it never comes off."

  Gabe opened the box.

  Julie stared at it for a long time, finally running her finger along the smooth parts of the gold. "It looks like a wedding ring for a giant," she said.

  At least the intent had been clear.

  "In a lot of ways it is. I know this is still scary for you, and you don't know what's going to happen next or how you'll feel about it, but this is a commitment to you. This doesn't just mark you as being my property. It says I'm taking responsibility for you. Forever. It means more to me than a wedding ring means to most people. I hope you can find a way to understand that. So I don't want to hear any talk about me getting rid of you. That won't happen. Once this collar is around your throat, that's it. Everyone in this house takes a collar like this deadly serious, including me. If you displease me, the answer to that is training, not abandoning or throwing you away, do you understand?"

  "Yes, Master."

  Gabe took a small black velvet pouch out of his pocket and pulled out a golden key that matched the collar. He removed the collar from it's cushioning, unlocked it with the key, and put it around Julie's throat. Then he put the key back in the velvet pouch and went to the far end of the room. There he took a modern art painting of bright geometric shapes off the wall to reveal a small wall safe. He punched in a code and put the pouch with the key inside, then he shut the safe and replaced the picture.

  In this time, Julie had gone to stand in front of the mirror over the dresser. She stared at the collar and touched the edge of it.

  Gabe moved behind her, his hands resting on her shoulders as their eyes met in the mirror. "Is it too heavy or uncomfortable?"

  "N-no, Master."

  She continued to stare at it.

  "Do you like it?"

  She took a long time to answer as if weighing all the ways he could mean that question. Finally she said, "It's beautiful."

  Chapter Twelve

  A couple of days passed and Julie began to relax into a routine with Gabe. Every morning, they took a shower together. He loved bathing her and making her bathe him. In only a few days it had become a ritual in which she found an odd sort of comfort.

  So far, nothing more dramatic or intense than the first day had happened, and definitely nothing as bad as the chains. She'd believed it was okay to push the button if she needed to, but she didn't want to need to. She was grateful he returned when he did because she'd been about to lose the will to keep going.

  Even as things had remained tame, Gabe had been clear about why. It wasn't just that he was going slow with her. He was waiting for her skin to fully heal from the waxing. This morning he'd decided she was fully healed. There was no tenderness or redness left, so today he said things would intensify.

  What that meant, Julie couldn't be sure, but she was afraid. Despite her fears, everything so far with Gabe had felt so dramatically different from what had happened at Dmitri's house that she hadn't had any flashbacks. In fact, sleeping in Gabe's arms each night had kept the nightmares at bay. But he hadn't fucked her yet. That was coming, and she still feared that when it did, the world around her would come crashing down, maybe for good this time.

  For the moment, she was in the gym training with Brian. This was her second day in the gym with him, and remarkably they'd actually developed a rapport. Gabe was right that Brian was a great trainer in the gym. Though she might only think that because Brian wasn't allowed to actually hurt her.

  She was grateful Gabe had set the bracelet that first night so only he could control it. She'd come to discover the bracelets could be controlled via a remote which could send a shock of electricity to the wearer.

  But even without such unconventional strategies, Brian was already pushing her in the gym. He'd commented that she was a little flabby the first day. Before she could get too hurt or offended, he clarified that he meant she could be a lot more lean and strong and that Gabe would like her that way.

  She couldn't be completely sure, but it seemed to her Gabe might have met with Brian to specify how he wanted her to look. She wondered if they'd discussed specific workout plans, if he'd been picky about how toned he wanted her and in what areas. This thought unexpectedly sent a jolt of excitement between her legs as she ran on the treadmill.

  "Something wrong?" Brian asked.

  "Nothing, sir." Julie felt her face and neck flush bright red and was glad no one could read her thoughts.

  "Good. You've got five more minutes here, and then we're going to hit the weights and work on that ass."

  She couldn't do a lot of talking at the moment. She was too winded from the treadmill. But she could think. And at the moment, her thoughts were running around like a spazzy toddler on a sugar high.

  What kind of sick weirdo was she to suddenly feel turned on by the idea of Gabe ordering his own Sculpted Julie doll? It was just-in the strangest way, the more control Gabe took, the safer she felt. Already her thoughts had begun to drift more and more to would this make Gabe happy?

  If she was honest with herself—except for the literal slavery—it wasn't that far off from how she'd imagined things would be some day when she married—assuming she were able to find a man who made enough money to let her stay home and just worry about his needs. Maybe this thing with Gabe wasn't that big of a bridge to cross, all things considered.

  Brian pushed some buttons on the treadmill, slowing her down a bit, and finally let the machine grind to a halt. She was about to step off the machine and head to the weight area when she looked up to find Gabe leaning casually in the doorway, his arms crossed over his chest. How long had he been standing there watching? Had he seen her blush a few minutes ago?

  "I'm ready for her," Gabe said.

  Brian shrugged. "If you plan to interrupt her training every day, you're not going to get the results you want."

  Gabe's intense gaze remained trained on Julie. "I have other results I want more at the moment."

  Brian chuckled. "Fair enough."

  "Julie, come with me," Gabe said.

  She walked past a few other girls who had been working out with their trainers, avoiding eye contact with any of them. She followed Gabe quietly through the main hall, up the stairs, and down the hallway to his bedroom. He shut the door softly behind them.

  "I want you to shower and then put on the clothes I've laid out for you on the bed, then meet me on the dungeon level in cell C."

  Her lip started to quiver. "Master, did I do something wrong?" If he was taking her to the dungeon, that meant punishment right? But she couldn't think of anything she'd done that deserved punishment. Since he'd put the collar around her throat she'd done everything he'd asked of her. She was following his rules.

  "You didn't do anything wrong. You aren't being punished. I told you I was upping the intensity of your training now that you're healed. It's time to
fully explore what's mine. Twenty minutes. Don't be late." He didn't wait for her to form a reply.

  Julie stood frozen in place, her heart hammering so loudly in her chest for a moment she thought the sound was coming from outside herself. All through her shower she had to remind herself this was the supposed training protocol he used normally with the other girls.

  And they all survived it.

  She had to remind herself Gabe had been everybody's favorite trainer. There had to be a reason for that.

  The clothes he'd left for her out on the bed consisted of a black leather mini skirt and a sheer black crop top, along with black leather thigh-high boots. He really wanted her to walk downstairs past other people wearing this? She'd worn worse for strangers.

  ***

  Gabe sat in a metal chair in a corner of cell C. This was one of the cells outfitted for both punishment and play. There were plenty of toys and furniture available for his use in this room, and they were less likely to be disturbed down here. On the ground beside his chair was a square black box and a book.

  He couldn't stop looking at his watch. The seconds and minutes crawled by. Twice already he'd been sure it must have stopped, yet every time he held it up to his ear, the ticking reassured him. But why was time moving so goddamn slow?

  He'd spent the days since Julie's training had begun impatiently waiting to intensify their play...and to fuck her. But he didn't want to hurt her or the sensitive flesh she'd had waxed for him. He'd carefully rubbed coconut oil into her skin each day as the redness faded bit by bit. Each day she seemed a bit less tender and a bit more ready for further exploration.

  Next time, she was only getting 24 hours. He knew from experience with training many girls over the years that it took a little time for skin—particularly in such delicate areas—to get used to waxing. Once it did, there was much less down time. But it was still difficult having the patience this first time, especially after weeks of having her in the house but not taking what he knew was his.

  He knew it. She knew it. If it had been any other woman, if it had been someone he didn't care for, he would have taken her the first night and done whatever the fuck he wanted with her. But he couldn't risk destroying her. He wanted her to trust him. And he couldn't bring himself to betray that trust.

  A part of him felt guilty for not allowing her to come yet. She'd whimpered and begged a little for it already, but this was his normal training protocol. He'd learned early on that if he took a girl and kept her from coming for the first few weeks, forcing her to focus only on his pleasure and absolute obedience, that a deeper surrender and loyalty took hold inside her.

  Gabe didn't like to brag, but the buyers always seemed to like girls who'd been shaped mostly by his training the best. The other trainers were too soft. Brian wasn't, but he was there to punish and enforce. He didn't do much regular training of the girls except for sculpting them in the gym.

  The door creaked open and Gabe's head jerked toward the sound. She was breathtaking. The gold collar that marked her as his glittered under the dome light. Her lightly tanned stomach was bared by the sheer black crop top. Her breasts were fully visible, her nipples poking through the fabric. He wondered if her arousal was from sexual excitement or fear. Maybe a little of both. Good.

  "Turn," he said.

  She turned around and he could see that the mini skirt was so delightfully short that it allowed the slightest curve of her ass to show when she moved.

  "Are you wearing panties?" He knew the answer already but he wanted to hear her say it.

  "No, Master."

  "Turn back around."

  She turned. He could tell her nerves were starting to get to her. No matter. Soon even her soul would belong to him. There would be no place she could run even inside her own mind, because she wouldn't want to be anywhere but at his feet.

  He pointed to a chair near the door. "Sit and spread your legs. I want to see that you've obeyed the no panties rule."

  She blushed. Still so adorably innocent somehow though there was no reason in the world she should be.

  Julie crossed to the chair, sat, and spread her legs wide. The skirt inched up against her hips, and he got a clear, clean view of that lovely bare pussy all ripe and ready for his invasion.

  "Good, now be a sweet girl and crawl over here to me."

  She took a sharp intake of breath as if steeling herself against what was coming and then crawled over to him, settling between his legs. Her gaze landed briefly on the bulge in his jeans, but then she bent and pressed her lips to his boots and waited quietly for further instruction.

  On her first night as his official slave, after the collar was around her throat, he'd given her the basic training manual that all the girls were given upon arrival. It contained various rules and protocols for successful interaction in the house. It saved a lot of explanation and helped them acclimate more quickly.

  For the past couple of days he'd only demanded hand jobs. Today would be different. Gabe rose from the chair and scooted it out of the way. He walked slowly around her, assessing her, letting her tension build until he could practically taste her anxiety on the air.

  He didn't like that her anxiety was mixed with real trauma from a past maybe too recent for this type of play, but he was carefully monitoring her fear. So far, she was well within the bounds of what was normal for his girls.

  He stopped behind her and bent to trail his fingertips along her collar. He leaned closer and whispered in her ear, "Who do you belong to?"

  "You, Master."

  "I've been very pleased with you the past few days. Are you ready to go to the next level with me?"

  "How many are there?"

  He laughed. "Not that many. I promise you'll survive it." He appreciated these small expressions of personality. It let him know she was still with him. She hadn't burrowed somewhere deep within herself that he couldn't touch.

  In his experience, it took a few weeks for a girl—almost any girl—to surrender completely. And that was with a solid training protocol. There were deviations. Some fell more quickly, some more slowly. Despite his expectations that she might be slower, Julie was right about on schedule, but it still might be too soon to tell.

  "Julie, do you trust me?"

  "Yes, Master."

  He studied her for changes in her facial expression, tension changes in her face or body, changes in breathing-but everything remained the same.

  "Master, do you love me?"

  "Of course. You know I do."

  "Still?" she asked.

  "Why would that change?"

  She shrugged. "I don't know."

  An answer like that was generally unacceptable to him, but Gabe could tell she wasn't sure why she felt so insecure all of a sudden. He had his suspicions. Sexual activity hadn't exactly been previously linked with safety and love for her.

  Gabe took her hand and pulled her up off the ground. He led her to a padded red leather chair that sat in the middle of the room under the dome light. There were cuffs attached in various places to the chair, but he wouldn't use them.

  "Sit and spread your legs for me again. Do not close them until I tell you, no matter how you feel. Rest your hands flat on your thighs and do not move them either."

  She did as he asked, but her breaths came more shallow.

  He whispered in her ear, "Breathe, slow deep breaths. You can handle this. I promise."

  Her breath deepened almost like in sleep. He took a tube from his pocket. It looked similar to the tube that had contained the coconut oil, but this tube contained something else—an arousal cream. It would cause her clit to swell and engorge, triggering an excited throbbing which would lead to increased wetness between her legs, and finally the desperate need to be brought to orgasm at any cost.

  The effects would last about an hour.

  Gabe knelt between her legs and squeezed cream out of the tube and applied it to her clit and labia, making sure to cover the entire area. Admittedly, this was a form
of torture. She would definitely survive it, but in its way it might be considered as bad as sleep deprivation or isolation or any of a million other things sick bastards did to get people to confess their secrets.

  But Gabe didn't want confession. He wanted complete and utter submission. She surely thought she'd surrendered to him already by calling him master and accepting his collar and being so sweetly obedient the past few days, but she had no idea.

  He looked at his watch. Timing was everything.

  "Remember, don't move your hands or close your legs," Gabe said.

  It took a few minutes for the cream to fully take effect, but when it did, the truth of her situation landed heavily on Julie. Her fingers unconsciously seemed to twitch in the direction of her pussy. It was both surprising and amusing, that the cream should have such a strong effect on her that she would almost unconsciously masturbate for him in order to make the need go away.

  "You'd better not. This can be a training session or a punishment session. Your call."

  She squeezed her eyes shut as if she could will it away. "Please..."

  Gabe chuckled. "But I'm not even touching you. Please what? What exactly are you begging for?"

  Her face flamed a brilliant shade of pink. "I don't know. I need you to touch me."

  He moved so he was eye level with her. "Open your eyes." She did and he met her with the full force of his stare. "I am very flattered that you need me to touch you so badly, but never beg me again until I give you permission to beg. Is that understood?"

  "Y-yes, Master."

  "Good girl."

  He stood and moved slowly around her, watching her suffer from his denial. He'd trained all kinds of girls. Willful girls. Meek girls. And everything in between. He'd had girls he had to punish on the first day because they thought they could masturbate for him and he would be so undone by the display and the wetness of their cunt that they wouldn't get in trouble. They were always wrong about that. But Julie was the most self-disciplined girl he'd ever come into contact with, despite the fact that the cream seemed to have an especially potent effect on her.