Stranger Than Truth Ch. 03

"Thanks Sally." Valerie straightened her shirt. Around them, people made a pointed effort to pretend that they had not heard what had happened. Val turned to Tasha. "Ms. Williams. Francine's brutalization of me was the second worst thing to happen to me, ever. The first was Mike's death." She squeezed Sally's shoulder. "It's very hard to remember. But, yes, we'll give you a demo. I want you, however, to experience a single stroke to your arm. Seeing me whipped will not tell you how much pain there will be. Feeling it on you will." She saw Tasha tense and pull back. "I know it frightens you. That's good. It should be frightening. I understand your reluctance, that's why I'm not asking for what you should really experience, a five to ten minute session with your back being whipped."

"I don't understand. How can you let this happen?"

"For me, submission is a part of me; as much a part of me as being a woman. I can't not submit. I'm so fortunate to have found a man - Master and a woman," Val hugged Sally close, "whom I love and trust so much that I can submit fully, without reservation. If you're not submissive, that's okay. You don't have to be. You only have to act the part, not live it. Come on, let's get to the room and show you what my story is about."

The group walked over to room seven, the one Valerie had rented. Inside, there was a St. Andrew's cross, a whipping post and several chains hanging from the ceiling, connected to a winch system. Sally set down the gym bag she had been carrying and extracted a cat. Turning to the actors, she held it up.

"This is what was used on Valerie that night. It's called a cat-o-nine-tails. Ironically, this one has thirteen lashes, not nine. Notice how the lashes themselves are thin and of a harder leather? That's what made it possible for Francine to scar Valerie. This one," Sally pulled another cat out, "is made with wider, softer lashes. I used this on Valerie Wednesday night and left no lasting marks."

Sally looked around, her gaze stopping on Melanie. "Melanie, would you hold your arm out and take hold of the ring right here?" Melanie did so. "May I whip your arm once with this one?" Sally held up the softer whip. Melanie had a gleam in her eye as she nodded. Sally struck the arm with the cat and Melanie moaned, her eyes closed. Crystal looked on, horror and excitement mixed together on her face. "May I use the other one?" Melanie nodded, taking a deep breath. The cat flew and Melanie cried out. Crystal leapt forward and eyed the red marks that appeared on Melanie's arm.

"Mel! Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I just… I had forgotten how intense it could be."

Sally gently took Melanie's hand from the ring. "How did the first one feel, Melanie?"

"It was… You know how a lover will scratch your back in passion and it hurts but feels good at the same time? It was like that. There was pain. But it felt good too."

"How about the second whip?"

"It hurt, a lot. Not much enjoyment there." Crystal looked at Melanie with a puzzled look on her face.

"Now, let's show you what a whipping looks like." Sally took Val close. "Are you ready for this?"

"I think so. I need you to be Mistress. I can't do it vanilla."

"That's fine," she whispered. Out loud, she said, "Valerie, take you clothes off and stand under the chains."

A calm came over Valerie as she sank into her submission. She undressed and stood under the chains. Sally clipped her wrist cuffs to the chains above her and locked her feet to covered attachments in the floor. Sally could sense fear in the passive appearing body of her lover.

"Valerie. Are you going to be okay with this? We can stop."

"I'm okay Mistress. I don't have much in the way of limits right now, but I'll be able to take a little."

"You safe word as soon as you need to. They don't need a long demo."

"Yes Mistress."

Crystal, a puzzled look on her face, asked, "What just changed? She's treating you differently."

"When Valerie submits, she becomes my slave, for all practical purposes. To signify that change, she calls me Mistress and accedes to my will. Until she uses her safe word, I can do anything I wish to her and with her." Noticing that Valerie was trembling with anticipation, Sally cut the explanation short and raised the whip.

Valerie cried out in pain with every stroke. Sally could tell that Val was already on the edge. Her tolerance for pain was visibly less than normal. The head space of the violation was still strongly embedded in her, magnifying her perception of the strokes. It took only ten lashes for Valerie to cry out her safe word. Sally immediately stopped and took her down, holding her as she cried her pain out.

Once Val had settled down and dressed, Sally asked her to wait outside the room while she talked with the actors. "Folks, I need to explain something. We all have limits and they are not always based on pain. Valerie was nowhere close to her limits in pain. Remember, when the incident actually happened, she did not safe word for an hour. Tonight, you saw an emotional limit. Reenacting the violation that occurred to her that night was rough. Remember this. You are telling the story of a strong and courageous woman who has suffered a lot and remains to this day, the most loving and giving woman I know. I want each of you to have a taste of what Valerie was feeling, physically tonight. Melanie, you already felt the cats. Now, the rest of you. I can't make you, but Val is right. You can't tell our story if you don't know what we go through."

Stan strode up and grasped a ring. Sally struck his arm and he bore it with macho perseverance. Melanie held Crystal's hand as the other hand grasped the ring. When the lashes struck her, she jerked her hand away and fell into Melanie's arms, crying. Everyone looked at Tasha. Under the weight of all those eyes, the actress walked to the ring, trembling, and grasped it. The cat struck and she howled in pain. Tasha collapsed to her knees, tears flowing from her eyes.

"I can't do this. I just can't do this," she sobbed.

Of all the people there, only Sally understood what was going on. The other three stars had felt the lash and knew it didn't hurt that much. Sally knew that for Tasha there was fear, a deep seated fear that magnified the sensations, making them far worse than they actually were.

"Would all of you wait outside with Val?"

They left, leaving Sally and Tasha alone.

"Ms. Williams? " Sally knelt beside her. "What is making this so hard for you? I've been in the lifestyle for years and I can see immense fear in you, more than the pain itself can account for."

"How can she let you do that? How can she believe that you love her? You abused her in front of us and she acted like it was right and proper. What have you done to her?"

Sally nodded her head. This explained much. "Who hurt you? Who abused you and left you so scarred?" Tasha shook her head, unwilling to talk about it. Sally continued. "I know it looks like I'm abusing her, but I'm not. Valerie would not stand still for it if I was. She is giving me a wonderful gift every time she submits to me. Val wants to: no, needs to give herself in this way. It's what makes her Valerie. It's not about the pain. It's about the submission. She will accept what I do because she needs to, and because she loves me.

"But the pain? How can she want the pain?"

"She doesn't want the pain itself. As she has put it so many times, 'pain sucks.' What she wants is to surrender herself to me, and to Master. She lets us inflict pain on her as evidence of her submission. What makes it not abuse is; first, it's consensual. She agrees to this in advance. Two, she is having her needs met. Do you know where Valerie wants to be right now? In bed with me, cuddling and being protected by my embrace. That's where we will be in an hour. Let's go. You are going to have to think about what will happen on the set and either find a way to deal with it, or leave this movie before it destroys you."

The group went their separate ways. Valerie and Sally drove home. True to her word, Sally spent the night lying with Valerie, holding her tight as she cried the remainder of the pain away. Sally was worried about her lover. For months since the crisis, Val had refused to have counseling. The violation that she had experienced was on par with that of rape, and Sally knew from personal experience that such trauma did not heal on its own. Until Valerie took steps to heal her heart and soul, she would repeatedly experience these memory attacks.

They fell asleep in each other's arms, not waking until late in the morning. Valerie woke first, jerking to alertness, fear knotting her stomach. In the back of her mind was something formless, something terrifying. Her body was covered in sweat and she felt like she had been shaking. Somehow, during the night, she had become separated from Sally, a very unusual occurrence for the couple. Beside her, Sally stirred. Sally's eyes opened and her head turned towards Valerie.

"Valerie. What's wrong? You look terrified."

"I am, Sally, but I don't know what I'm frightened of. I just woke up scared. I think I had a nightmare, but I can't remember it."

"Val, I'm worried about you. This isn't the first time. You've had eight unexplained nightmares in the last seven months. It's the incident. Francine violated you that night." She put her hand on Valerie's to forestall the complaint. "I know she was hurting and you've forgiven her. However, it was still a violation. In D/s terms, it was almost as bad as rape. You can't just walk away from that and expect to not be affected. You need to see a therapist."

"No I don't. I'll be okay. It doesn't affect me, except for an occasional night's sleep. Really Sally, I'll be fine."

Sally sighed. This was not the first time she had broached the subject with Valerie. The result was always the same. Valerie always refused. Sally suspected that it was in reaction to the near destruction of her life in the wake of being outed as a submissive and a masochist. Valerie wasn't a true masochist, but that's what the general public thought. It was going to take something more than an unremembered nightmare to push Val into therapy.

The two had a date at Charles' mansion. A quick check of their email showed no specific instructions. They did know that Sally would be submitting and Valerie was to observe. After Valerie's disobedience in trying to take a cane stroke meant for Sally, Charles had decided to have Valerie watch a scene with Sally. He wanted to see how she reacted.

Sally, knowing she would be submitting, dressed in a minimum of clothing. A low cut tank top with, "If you can read this, then you're staring at my boobs," written on it, was joined by a pair of polyester shorts that came down a mere two inches below her crotch. Her favorite sandals with the up-the-calf straps finished her look. Valerie, who was not expecting to be in a scene directly, dressed in t-shirt and jeans with sneakers. They had a light brunch and left for Charles' place.

"Valerie, Sally. Master Charles is waiting for you in the lounge." Herman, Charles' butler was not the person who greeted them at the door. Instead, it was Marcia, one of Charles' other submissives. She was dressed in a classic French maid's outfit. Not the outfit a maid in France might wear, but the fetish version that consisted of a tiny apron, a push up bra piece and five inch stiletto heels.

"Marcia! Are you serving this weekend?" Valerie asked.

"Yes, it's my weekend." Charles' submissives were taking the place of the weekend staff who had been lost several months ago, when it had been discovered many of them were uncomfortable being around the activities that they engaged in on the weekends. It ended up being a win-win situation, as all of the submissives found that serving Charles in mundane things was deeply satisfying. "You'd better go. Master is expecting you."

Charles was waiting in his favorite chair. The room that was referred to alternately as a study, a lounge and a living room had not changed much in the months Valerie had known him. Valerie gave a fond look at the sofa on which Charles had fucked her with his hand the first time they had met. Of course, he had made her suck his cock and beg to be fucked. Sally and Valerie knelt in front of him.

"Welcome slaves. Are you ready to submit this afternoon?"

Together, they answered, "Yes Master."

"Valerie, I suspect you will have the harder submission. I have only one order for you right now. You are to watch every aspect of Sally's submission and not interfere in any way. Do you understand?"

"Yes Master. Watch and do not interfere."

"Sally, I have an afternoon of pain planned for you."

"Thank you Master." Sally's breathing was becoming shorter as her nervousness increased. In the last few months, her level of anxiety in submitting to Charles had steadily increased. It never seemed to interfere with her submission. In fact, she had submitted to more and to a deeper level since the hand fasting.

"Follow me ladies."

Charles rose and headed downstairs, leading the couple to the dungeon. Once there, he led them to a device that looked very much like a carpenter's horse. There were differences, however. The cross piece had a partially pointed top, rounded for the last quarter inch of width. It was also adjustable, capable of rising and lowering. Charles pointed to a spot five feet from the end of the 'horse', as it was called.

"Valerie, stand there and watch. You are not to move from that spot until I say so."

"Yes Master."

Valerie moved to the spot, Charles said to Sally, "Sally, strip."

With a gulp, Sally began removing her clothes. While she did, Charles used a hand crank to lower the horse so that it was easy for Sally to straddle. Sally knew what was coming and her pussy was already experiencing anticipatory pain sensations. It had been over a year since she had ridden the horse. The last time, she had safe worded after fifteen minutes.

Knowing what was required of her, Sally straddled the horse so that her legs were on either side. Charles bound her hands and hooked them to a chain that was hanging above the device. He pulled the chain just tight enough so that her arms were fully extended, taking most of her weight, yet she could still stand flat on her feet. She could take the weight off her arms by standing on tip toe. Then Charles reversed the hand crank, raising the top piece up until it was touching Sally's pussy.

He stopped for a moment and spread Sally's pussy lips so that the top piece fit into her cunt. The crank was turned again and the top piece started to force its way deeper into Sally's cunt. Instinctively, Sally raised up on her toes to avoid the penetration. When he thought he was at the right point, Charles locked the top bar in place.

"Sally, let yourself down."

Slowly, she dropped to her feet, forcing the edge of the horse deeper into her cunt. Sally groaned in pain as the edge forced her lips apart and itself deeper into her. Her pussy was in pain, spread wide with a massive intruder trying to force itself in even deeper. She knew her arms would begin to ache soon from the strain of holding her weight.

"Master?"

"Yes, Sally?"

"It hurts Master. How long?"

"Until I want to stop. You are free to ride the horse."

"Yes Master."

Sally raised herself onto her toes, relieving the pain in her cunt, somewhat. As she stood, her legs began to feel the burn. It didn't take long before the burn became an ache. Soon, she was damp all over her body from the perspiration her exertions caused. With no breeze in the basement, all the moisture could do was run down her body, each drop's trail a tickle across her skin. Her breathing was ragged and she was moaning almost constantly.

Valerie watched her lover suspended and the bar raised up into her pussy. Her stomach began to develop a knot as she watched the pain clearly grow in Sally. Tears ran down her face as her heart was torn at watching Sally's steadily increasing agony. It felt very much like the first time she had been ordered to whip Sally, during Val's initiation. Valerie was sure that little pieces of her heart were slipping away.

After fifteen minutes, Sally's legs could no longer support her weight. Trembling, she lowered herself to her feet and the pain in her cunt spiked, drawing a cry from her. It was echoed by a cry from Valerie. Sally, who had been keeping her eyes closed in concentration, opened them to see Valerie crying freely, her hands making jerking motions towards Sally as she fought to not interfere. Valerie was acting as if she was in greater pain than Sally was, and maybe she was, on an emotional level.

Sally's pussy was soon in agony and she was forced to go back on her toes. Her legs had not had anywhere near enough time to recover and were instantly in pain again. It only took ten minutes this time before she was forced to drop to her feet again. This time, the pain in her cunt was so bad she cried out.

"Oh God! Master, it hurts. Please Master, I need off."

"No Sally. Keep riding."

Valerie cried out, "Please Master, let her go, take me instead. I can't take it, Master. It's hurting her so much."

"Valerie, do not interfere."

Valerie, sobbing uncontrollably, dropped to her knees and crawled to Charles. Her head at his feet, she begged. "Master, please. Don't do this to her. It's too much. She'll be maimed. Stop please Master. Don't let her be scarred like I was, please Master."

Charles' voice was hard. "Valerie! Go back to your position and watch."

Sobbing even harder, Valerie went back to her position and, unable to stand, looked up at Sally. Sally was going from toes to feet almost constantly now, unable to find a position that was pain free. She had begun to sob in pain as well, though her pain was physical. Having Sally where he wanted her, Charles pulled out a long lashed cat and struck Sally on the back. The sudden pain from her back caused Sally to lose her footing and her entire weight was dropped onto her cunt. She screamed in agony and pulled up with her arms.

Valerie lost it. She jumped up, ran forward and grabbed the whip, screaming, "Red light Master, dear God, Red light. Sally's dying, Master, don't let her die! Red light Master, Red light."

As she dropped to the ground, dragging the whip from the surprised dominant's hands, she continued to mutter, "Red light," over and over again. Charles quickly recovered and lowered the bar until Sally could stand clear of it.

Sally, whimpering, begged, "No Master, I can take more, Master."

"I know you can, but Valerie cannot. Remember, this was for Valerie's training." He unbound her hands and told her, "Go to recovery. Take care of your pussy. I need some time with Valerie."

"Yes Master. Is she going to be all right?"

"I don't know. There's more here than a low tolerance for witnessing pain."

Sally went to the recovery room where she could rest her muscles and sooth her aching cunt. Charles lifted Valerie to her feet and helped her to the elevator, not trusting that she could deal with stairs in her current emotional state. Instead of taking her to the lounge, he took her to his private bedroom. Large and opulent enough to put many five star hotels to shame, Charles' bedroom was furnished to allow him to never have to leave. A California king sized bed dominated the room. There was a vanity, an armoire, two separate dressers, a love seat, a desk and chair and an ensuite bathroom. The one unusual feature of the room was a largish dog kennel sitting next to the bed. Charles did not own any pets. He guided Valerie to the love seat and sat with her, arms holding her tight, until she recovered enough to talk.

"Valerie. We need to talk."