A Tale of Revenge Ch. 16: Epilogue

Epilogue

Anna twisted in the uncomfortable garments. The ceremonial robes were layer upon layer of heavy material designed, she'd decided, to make it impossible for a nervous bride to make a run for it.

"Like I'd make it more than two steps running in this mess," she muttered to herself. She tried, ineffectively, to untie the laces at her back. After hours in the heavy garments she desperately wanted to be free of the weight. "No wonder ladies do not but sit on their bums, how can you last more than a moment walking in all this frippery?" When she reached her hand up and back, the whisk collar and shoulders laden in embroidery and gems kept her from actually reaching the braided ropes that held the robe in place.

With an unladylike groan she gave up, resigned to waiting for her maids to come and help her. At least the crown on her head was only supported by the intricate braided pattern of her hair and she made short work of extricating it from the nest her clever servants had made to keep it on her head throughout the day. She tried to stretch her neck but again was foiled by the stiff golden collar. She uttered one of the worst curses her soldiers had taught her and sank down onto a divan that would allow her to perch her tired body on her side—wooden frame beneath her skirts be damned. She rested her forehead on her arms while she waited for someone to help her out of her wedding clothes.

"For a queen you have a terrible mouth," Leonid's voice came from behind her. Anna smiled into her arms.

"You have never known the appalling fate of being tied into enough fabric for a year's worth of clothing all at once," she said, trying to turn her head towards him but again brought up short by her clothing. "Please help," she said piteously. He chuckled and she felt the laces of the floor-length outer robe sliding through the multitude of islets that marched down her spine.

With a sigh she stood up and he helped her remove the heavy thing with all its adornments. He raised an eyebrow at her when he felt its weight. The sleeveless outermost garb offered the most heft but by no means the most fabric. Leonid placed the jewel-encrusted coat on the divan and turned back to Anna.

She gave him a smile and turned around again, giving him her back. "They all fasten in the back to make sure the wearer can't mount an escape." Leonid laughed and got to work on the next item, a heavy golden surcote with voluminous sleeves lined in deep blue satin that hung to the floor from her elbows and the support for the stiff collar that kept her head regally high and pointed forward at all costs. "I don't know who decided to let a blacksmith design a dress, there's more metal than cloth." she said when he offered no further conversation, the tension in her mounting.

The third layer was a champagne silk undergown that was sown into pleats and embroidered with delicate birds flitting between winding vines. Anna actually thought it a pity that it had been so covered up by all the gaudiness of the outer layers. Leonid made quick work of the tiny laces, which marched all the way down the fitted sleeves to her wrists.

"Could you not just wave your hands and make it all disappear?" she said while he undid the intricate knots of silk ribbon at her wrist.

"This is so much more fun," he said with a mischievous smile, placing a small kiss on the inside of her newly exposed wrist, "Like unwrapping a present."

She blushed as he helped pull the undergown off, no easy feat given the amount of structural supports underneath. "But all the jewels are on the outside."

She stood still as he circled back around her, considering the wood and bone inlays that maintained her posture and the desired shape of the dresses. The frame for the skirts came off easily but the heavy outer corset was much trickier as it held up the ornate whisk collar that rested its weight on her shoulders before flaring up behind her in a wave of lace and pearls. She actually groaned when he lifted it off her, her shoulders loosening instantly.

"I'm sure we can find something to play with underneath it all," he whispered in her ear. She inhaled sharply, heat stirring in her belly.

Beneath the heavy frame was the biggest source of her misery and one she was most eager to be rid of—the dreaded corset, this one in deep red silk hiding the insidious boning. But Leonid's hands did not return and she twisted to look where he might have gone. She found his gaze and gave him a plaintive look. "Please," she murmured, desperate to draw a deep breath again.

"I can't decide if you begging is more attractive than the sight of you in this devious contraption," he came around to face her, his fingers tracing the lines of the delicate lace at the swell of her breasts which were pushed up and held high. Anna's breathing picked up as his clever fingers danced along the scandalous neckline, making her ribs ache against the garment.

"Unless you like your women unconscious, I dare say the corset will have to come off," she said with a small smile. "But, I promise to keep begging even once it's removed."

Leonid laughed, low and promising, "Of that I have little doubt." She twisted again, offering him the laces at her back and he complied. She moaned as the laces came undone and the constricting garment fell away. Leonid's hands came to her back and his thumbs rubbed the marked skin through her shift. "My, the things they dream up to keep you sitting like a queen." She just gave another little moan in reply and sank into his soothing hands.

"Rupi says I walk like a woodsman," she said referring to her favorite maid. She made small sounds of encouragement as he rubbed out the worst of the ache from her compressed skin. "So they bundled me up so no one would see."

He chuckled again and his arms came around her body and pulled her close, her back flush to his chest, her bottom sitting enticingly over his groin. His hands came to her lower belly, pulling her hard against him and eliciting a gasp from her. Her hands covered his and she tilted her head, giving his lips free rein over her bared neck.

"I suppose my husband won't miss me tonight," she said, waiting to gauge his response. She knew he had approved the marriage but he had been acting more possessive of late.

"Rafia is busy with Serena and won't miss you at all," Leonid said.

Anna smiled. "So you have come to make sure I don't suffer from loneliness? That's very considerate." She felt him smile as he kissed the column of her neck.

Leonid ignored her and his hands began to stroke her body over the silky shift. She arched her back as he cupped one of her breasts, pushing the sensitive mound into his hand insistently. "Eventually," she began before his fingers found her nipple making her voice catch, "there will be some duties attached to this marriage." His fingers clamped down on her nipple sending a slice of pain through her breast and into the rapidly building fire under her skin. She whimpered as her arousal grew.

"Are you trying to provoke me?" Leonid whispered, his lips against the hard shell of her ear. "Because that would seem unwise." He released the hold on her nipple and stroked the hard nub to soothe the pinch.

"To the casual observer, perhaps," Anna started again and Leonid began a coordinated attack, his lips on her neck while his hand descended across her ribs, down her flat stomach and came to cup her mound. His other hand came across her torso and pulled her against his hard body. She lost her train of thought as she melted into him, her hands clutching his as his fingers slipped between her legs, finding her heat underneath the thin fabric.

"You were saying?" he said wickedly, his nose sliding against her cheek and she turned her face towards his, waiting for his lips to claim hers. "Hmm?"

"You are teasing me," she sighed. "On my wedding night no less." The corners of her lips curled when he let out a small growl into her ear. Then his mouth found hers as she twisted her neck to meet him. His kiss was heated and demanding, she raised her hand to his neck and pulled him deeper, enjoying how his tongue tangled with her own, his hands rougher as they held her body.

He turned her around, his lips never leaving hers as he pulled her tightly against him. She brought her hands up into his hair, pulling herself up to his demanding kiss. She moaned into his mouth as his hands smoothed over the curve of her back onto her bottom and picked her up. She brought her knees up, unable to untangle her legs from the long shift, and clasped them at his waist. Her fingers tangled in his hair and she pressed against him, his hand traveling up her side, dwarfing her torso in his palm.

He pulled back from the kiss, his eyes raking over her flushed face and lips swollen from his attentions. The kohl on her eyes accented their size and the sweeping line of her eyelids. The pale powder that had dusted her skin was long since brushed away and her skin was pink with arousal. She looked at him with such hunger that he found it hard not to throw her down on the bed and take her now. But they had plans tonight, ones he shouldn't rush.

Slowly he lowered her to her feet, smiling at the flash of disappointment he saw in her face.

"Don't fret," he said with a smile that was not entirely friendly, "but we do have to get to the begging portion of the evening." Anna brought her hands to his chest but he grasped them in his hand and pulled them behind her back in one smooth motion, drawing the most delicious moan from her.

"Please," she whispered, her voice husky and eyes sincere.

"Please what?" he said, shifting both her wrists to one hand and plucking at her nipple once again with his free hand , making her voice catch when she tried to answer.

"Anything," she said as she twisted in his grip.

"Good girl," he smiled down at her. He let go of her hands but she didn't raise them again to touch him, knowing he wouldn't want her to. He unwound the ribbons at her shoulders and let her shift fall to the floor, leaving her bare but for the silver chain around her neck, its blue bead resting between her breasts, shining the same color as his eyes.

He pulled her from her cabinet into the bedchamber, which was lit by dozens of candles. She spared a moment to glance at the display before turning back to him, a soft smile on her lips. The rug under her toes was warmed by the lit fireplace, chasing away the cool night air. He stopped her in the center of the rug and broke contact, standing before her, his arms at his sides, his eyes fixed on hers.

For a moment they stayed this way, letting silence fill the room, anticipation building in their spines as they enjoyed the simple act of beginning. He stepped towards her and touched his fingers to her hairline softly, her eyes closing as his fingertips made contact. The intricate plaits came apart at his command, parting as his fingers ran through her hair, releasing the dark waves down her back. She opened her eyes again as his gentle fingers ran through the strands, the pull on her scalp comforting.

When his fingers reached the ends of her waves, he brought his hands forward, catching her wrists against and bringing them to his chest. He took one hand and placed a kiss in the center of her palm, then on her wrist. She bit her lip, stifling a moan as he did it to the other one, sending more waves of sensation along her body despite barely touching her.

His hands closed around her wrists and she felt cuffs appear beneath his fingers. He pulled her bound hands up over her head until she was stretched on the balls of her feet, staring up into his face, her body pulled tight. When he released her hands they stayed in place, held by a cord from the ceiling that hadn't been there a moment ago. Having her thus restrained Leonid proceeded to run his hands along her body, stoking the swirling heat inside her. His fingers and lips sought out every sensitive patch of skin, every weak spot he'd ever discovered during their time together, until she was panting, arching into him, desperate for him to start in earnest.

She whimpered, her eyes closed as she twisted towards him. His fingers brushed the hair over her mound and she felt weak, dizzy with need, desperate to feel him touch her more solidly.

"All in good time, Anna," he stepped back and she made a distressed sound in the back of her throat. "We have plans tonight," he said and she opened her eyes. She saw the desire in his face but also a question. She looked down at his hand and saw the multi-stranded whip dangling from his fingertips. She pressed her lips together, a wave of something close to fear ran through her, or was it anticipation?

After recovering all her memories it had taken years to reclaim her pleasure from pain; there had just been too many triggers. But slowly she had taken back her experiences, learning to enjoy the pain again instead of fear it, and finding pure pleasure at Leonid's hands as the trauma grew more distant. Whipping had been a sticking point though, and she had lost her nerve every time.

But here, on this night, she would face it. She needed it and she knew he did as well. Her marriage to Rafia was political, though the two were good friends. They'd fought together for five years, stabilizing their borders, bringing wayward nobles and their armies to heel. But it had begun to chafe with the court and the population that there were two equal but unattached heads of state. Serena had given her blessing to the match in private, promising to remain a secret lover to the king, but this was not easy on anyone.

Marriage was marriage and she would be expected to produce heirs, especially given the suspicions around their relationship. Rafia knew, more or less, that she was engaged in her own personal matters, but did not understand the details as they were. Leonid was her private affair, not even Serena or Alona knew of him. And though both Leonid and Anna knew their bond transcended the earthly matters she dealt in during the day, there was an undercurrent of apprehension at the newest development.

Anna needed to get past this last barrier, to give him the power over all of her pleasure. She wanted to submit to Leonid, to truly trust him completely. And she sensed it from him as well, the desire to cross this last bridge, to claim her entirely as his own even as she was married to another. And so here she found herself, strung up before him, looking at the whip in his hand and teetering on the edge of the decision.

"Anna," he said softly, bringing her eyes up to his. She saw in his look that he would stop now if she said the word, that he would be happy just to take her as she was.

But she wouldn't be.

"Yes, Leonid," she said, her voice husky with anticipation, "Please, I want it." She twisted her body towards him, offering her lithe form to his desire. His eyes lit up and he came up against her, his lips capturing hers again, his hand and the leather straps pressing her back and holding her against him. She softened under his assault, letting him dominate the kiss.

He stepped back and running his fingers over her pebbled nipples, he stepped behind her, his hand never losing contact with her skin. He pushed her long hair over her shoulder, exposing her back. His fingertips drifted lazily along her spine and then his hand flattened as he descended, curving over her bottom and grabbing a handful of flesh. She groaned and arched her already curved spine further into him. His fingers slipped between her legs, dipping into the dampness he found. She was wet and his fingers slid across her plump lips, parting them and seeking his prize.

She could feel his clothing against her back as he kissed her shoulder, penetrating her with his thick finger at the same time, making her gasp prettily. His other finger slid forward circling her engorged nub without actually touching it. The room filled with her soft desperate sounds as he worked her towards her peak, pulling back every time she got too close. His teeth nibbled at her shoulder and neck as her head fell back to rest on his shoulder. Another finger entered her, stretching her further, and then his thumb pressed against her bumhole.

Anna shuddered as the sensations coursed through her, as if heat rose from her core to fill her skin almost painfully. A great pressure was growing inside her, one that both tempted and frightened her with its intensity. She reveled in the slick feeling of his fingers, the burn of his thumb against her tight muscles. "Oh yes," she called out as his thumb sank further, plunging in and out of her. She was so close, all thought focused on the building sensations about to burst inside her.

But then he slowed, and withdrew his hand cruelly. She whimpered but didn't protest, agonized as his hands moved over her overly sensitive skin, her whole body perched on the edge. He stepped back and she tried to steady her breath.

The first blow with the flogger felt like crackles of lightning across her back. Her skin was so primed, her body humming in arousal, that the soft slap of the leather strands enhanced the sensation to those affected strips of skin. The second blow was harder and stung. The third fell on her ass and flicked across her sit spot making her moan. The pain was delicious, the pressure and sting of the whip made her intensely aware of each inch of skin begging for attention.

There was no fear, no panic anymore. She was single-mindedly focused on the present, the man at her back and the feeling of his whip against her flesh. The next two strokes were harder still and she cried out, the burning sting working its way inside her, stoking the fire that was already too hot. His hand returned between her legs, teasing and stimulating her soaked slit, her arousal already wetting her inner thighs. She so desperately wanted to climax. Anna tried to push herself further onto his hand only to have him withdraw it again.

Soft leather cracked across her back at her shoulder, and then again at the other, and again across her ass and thighs. The strands fell against ever more sensitive flesh until she felt as if her entire upper back was one great burn, calling out for another blow to localize it, draw the pain to sharp points and let it sink back into the sensation as a whole. Tears worked their way from her eyes though she couldn't tell if they were from the pain or the desperation to climax.

He landed a hard blow that cracked against the tortured skin of her ass, and she cried out, so close but unable to finish. She heard the whip fall to the floor and Leonid's hands met her back making her hiss and moan as he stroked the pink flesh. The slide of his hands was painful but so welcome, the smooth coolness of his skin comforting. His hands came around to the front of her body and pulled her into him again, her back flush against his chest, head falling back to his shoulder, his fingers stimulating her slippery clit. The fiery sensations on her back amplified with the brush of his shirt against her reddened skin making her moan.

"Would you like to finish, Anna?" he said softly, his lips against her ear as she made desperate sounds that couldn't be considered words.

"Oh, please," she begged, feeling his lips stretch into a smile against her skin. "Yes, please," she gasped as his fingers continued. She was so close.

He hooked his other hand behind her knee and drew it up, opening her lewdly. His thick cock lined up with her weeping slit and he pushed himself into her, stretching the tight channel as he thrust inside her. Anna called out, the rough entry burned despite how wet she was. He didn't slow, knowing how much it excited her further. When he was fitted inside her up to the hilt she could feel him pulsing against her, his skin pressing to the inflamed globes of her bottom.