Ray Ch. 06: Rise

"Then you will carry out the punishment, with a witness."

"I don't give permission for my slave to be punished in the presence of anyone but myself."

"I will be counting the marks once the punishment is completed," Madame Lexi replied, breaking her neutrality as her lip curved up at the corner. "I'm sure you're already aware, Mistress Natalia, that as Head Mistress of this Château, I have the power to evaluate any and all wounds inflected by any mistress on any slave under the protection of this château."

"Yes, Madame," his mistress nodded, finally defeated.

"I expect to count twenty marks."

"Yes, Madame."

He followed behind his mistress as she made her way to the door. It was the first time he had walked down the halls of the château without a collar around his neck, and it would be the last. His fingers ran over his bare skin, eager for the moment he would reach up and feel her initials carved into the metal locked around his neck.

She stopped outside the door to a small dungeon, waiting for him to open it. He pulled on the handle, already aware of what was inside.

"Lock it," she said as she walked past him.

He turned the deadbolt, ensuring nobody would interrupt them, then followed her until she stopped between two metal poles that ran from the ceiling to the floor. His eyes glanced at the leather restraints hanging from them before he raised his arms above his head, holding them as far apart as he could. It wasn't the first time he had been tied between the poles, and he was certain it wouldn't be the last.

She secured his arms and legs to opposite sides leaving him spread apart, his entire body open for her use. Her hand ran over his stomach, tracing the lines formed by the muscles underneath his skin. She pressed her body to him, her mouth finding his as she reached around him, dragging her nails roughly across his backside. His prisoner strained against the bars of its cage, awakened by the sensation.

He tensed when she broke contact, watching as she made her way to one of the cabinets. She pulled open the door, bending down to dig through one of the drawers. He stared at the crease where her thighs ended, rounding out into perfect orbs. She always squirmed when he ran his tongue over it, her skin ticklish underneath his caress. She bent down farther, a thin barrier of black lace blocking his eyes from their favorite sight.

He noticed the curve of her lips as she straightened, a rattan cane twirling in her hands as she walked back towards him. Pain was not an activity he craved, but his body knew no agony sweeter than the punishment she inflicted upon it. He was ready to be renewed, released from his transgressions, freed from all his failures. He needed it now more than ever before.

She bent the cane slightly, staring at the curve. When she looked back at him, her eyes flashed green. "This is going to hurt, Officer Ray."

He held her gaze, standing tall for his goddess. "I'm yours to hurt, Mistress."

She ran the cane over his skin, lightly teasing his upper thighs. "You're mine?"

"Yours, Mistress." He tensed as she moved behind him, sucking in his breath when the rattan pressed into his skin.

The cane came down hard, igniting his nerves from the waist down. "Mine?"

"Yours, Mistress." The breath fired from his lips along with the words as the cane landed again, the sting shooting down his legs.

The cane landed twice more, cutting into the back of his left thigh. "Mine?"

"Yours." For as long as she would allow him to be at her mercy.

"Mine?"

He winced, the pain searing through him as she landed four more blows. "Yours."

"Mine?" The cane struck his other side, the three red lines rising up in his mind as tally marks of his failures.

"Yours."

Her hands ran over his wounds, soothing the pain tearing through his body as she pressed into him from behind. "Mine?"

"Yours." He tried to turn his head, searching for her lips as they slid over the back of his neck. They moved down his spine, her breasts dragging down his skin.

"Mine?" The question was soft as she moved away from him, the cane bringing three assaults firing through his body.

"Yours." It was all he was and all he had ever been.

"Mine?" The cane came down three more times before she moved in front of him.

"Yours."

She unclasped her necklace, letting it fall into her hand. She slid off his old key, tossing it aside, then pulled the new key out of her bra and slid it onto the chain. "Mine."

"Yours." He bit into his lip as she shoved the key into the padlock. It clicked open with ease then fell to the floor. His cage soon followed, pulled free by her fingers.

She ran her hand over him, leaning into him and bringing her lips to his. "Mine."

"Yours." The word got lost in his mouth as her hand caressed him, gently cradling his sac before running down his length.

She pulled away and moved back behind him, bringing the cane down twice against his skin. "Mine."

He embraced the pain, letting it vibrate through his bones. It was time to take back control. There would be no more running. There would be no more hiding. His goddess would not spend the rest of her days in fear. "Yours."

"Mine." The cane landed one last time, his final reminder not to fail her again.

"Yours."

She pulled up her dress, revealing the black lace underneath. His length jumped along with his heart as she hooked her fingers through the thin strings at her hips, pushing the lace down her thighs until it fell into a heap on the floor. "Mine."

His thoughts were lost in the memory of her warmth, the pulse deep within his sac dulling the throb of his punishment. "Yours."

She pulled herself up, wrapping her legs around him. "Mine."

Pain ripped through him as her feet hit against his wounded skin, a bittersweet agony. His tongue entwined with hers, his length sliding over her arousal soaked thighs. "Yours."

She reached above her head, wrapping one of the hanging chains around her wrist. She pulled against it, lifting her body just enough to drop it back down over his hardened flesh. "Mine."

He sucked in a breath as her heat covered him, tightening around him, holding him inside her. "Yours."

She lifted herself again, dropping down onto him. He tried to rock back, desperate to find the leverage to thrust into her. She let go of the chain, reaching over to unbuckle the restraints holding him hostage. He pulled his hands free, grasping at her hips as he shoved into her wet heat. The sting from his punishment fired through his nerves as her feet kicked over his skin, fueling his desperation. There was nothing he couldn't endure as long as she was in his arms.

Her legs released their hold as he lifted her up and pulled her back down, driving into her with all his strength. She gasped as their bodies slammed together, the sound sending a tremor down his spine. Her body tightened around his, pulsing through him as her nails clawed down his shoulders. Her eyes closed, her head rolling back as the rhythm continued. He followed the curve of her neck, meeting the green of her eyes when her head came back towards his. "Come for me, Officer Ray."

The words tore through him, igniting every nerve. His breath turned into a low growl, rumbling deep in his throat as his muscles contracted beneath her fingers.

She pressed her forehead to his, holding his head in her hands as the explosion surged through him. "Mine."

***************

It was the second time she had walked up to the teal door since Ben had found a way inside. She had painted it when she first bought the house, eager to cover the dark brown it had been. The minute she was handed the key her paychecks had disappeared as she made the house her own, painting and decorating and renovating. But now the air inside was tainted, raising the hair on her skin as the devil's presence still lingered.

Ray followed her through the door, locking it behind them. "We can have an alarm system installed if you want to move back."

She looked at the thin layer of dust settled across the wood furniture in her living room. If Ben had come back, he hadn't disturbed what he wasn't looking for. "I can't live here."

"You can rent it out. It's in a nice neighborhood..."

She walked down her narrow hallway, wondering if her footsteps followed the same Ben had taken. The door to her bedroom was open, her bed in its normal disarray. She didn't look at the spot she had huddled in when Ben had stood outside her door. She went straight into her closet, focusing on what they had come for. The plain brown box was still where she had left it when she had unpacked for the first time in her new home.

He walked up behind her, wrapping his arms around her as he peered over her shoulder. "Is that it?"

She pulled open the folded pieces, unwrapping the silver collar from the white tissue paper. Her fingers traced over her initials, and she wondered if his would do the same the first time she locked it around his neck. "Are you sure you want it, Officer Ray?"

His lips pressed into her neck, his arms tightening around her. "Yes, Mistress."

She leaned back against him, smiling when his lips tickled against her ear. Her phone rang, startling her from her thoughts. She pulled it out of the front pocket of her sweatshirt, glancing down at the unfamiliar number lighting up on the screen.

"Hi, can I speak to Natalie Morris, please?"

"This is she."

"Hi, Natalie. This is Joe Freeman. We've met once or twice before, I believe."

She tensed, curious why a dom from Château de Gourmandise would be calling her. "Yes, I believe we have."

"I know this is soon to be calling, and I'm sorry for your loss, but I have some paperwork that needs to be signed regarding the estate of Victoria Holland before I can move forward with carrying out her wishes for her burial."

She slid to the floor, scooting back against the wall. Ray fell to his knees in front of her, his eyes hunting hers for an explanation.

"Natalie?" the voice on the other end of the line started.

"I'm here. I wasn't aware she had passed."

The other end of the line went silent other than the sound of his breath.

"When?"

"Four days ago."

She pulled her knees into her chest, the burn tearing through her lungs and escaping through the tears that fell from her face. Her phone dropped to the floor, her hands wrapping around body as if they could hold on to the piece of her heart that had been ripped away.