Chapter 5

In considering how the estates should be run several important decisions had been made. Partly caused by the remarkable spate of pregnancies, these decisions had largely involved Emma. I had not, as might be assumed in amongst all these pleasures of the flesh, either forgotten, or neglected her. Tea was still being taken at regular intervals. As part of the ongoing development I had taken her to Scotland to see if there was a possibility of linking the two operations. Her recommendation, after consulting with Andy Campbell was that although there was stalking deer to pay the way, something that was needed to keep them in check, the greater use would be for conservation and recreation, and that this would pay better. I agreed that they should get help from a university with the work that needed to be done.

The other thing that was of some importance was that during a consultation with Sarah on the running of the house it had been decided that we wouldn't go ahead with the idea to use it for shooting parties. This was partly because we, that is HL and I, didn't want to disturb our routine, as it were; we didn't need to exploit the estate's value to the maximum because we had outside finances, but also the number of small persons that would soon be arriving meant the we would be more like a crèche than a hotel. Guests paying ludicrous amounts of money wouldn't want squalling brats all over the place. It was during these discussions that Sarah touched on something that had already made itself apparent to me. Chrissie was not as stupid as we had been led to believe. In fact it was more a case that school had, as is so often the case, let her down, and in fact she was quite sharp. Sarah told us that Chrissie was already developing remarkable culinary skills and she wondered if these could be taken further. We agreed to investigate this.

And so, the morning following my introduction to Annabelle's oddities saw me having a serious chat with Chrissie. We agreed to investigate the idea that she could attend catering college and develop the interest that she already had.

At the end of the discussion I said:

"Right, get your clothes off."

"What?"

"You heard me, now."

And she started to strip. She got to twirling in her knickers and bra, playing the coquette, and I snapped:

"All of it."

She looked at me and then skinned out of them. I went behind her and snapped a pair of hand cuffs on.

"What are you..."

"Be quiet." I said, sharply.

I took a black scarf and wound it round her eyes so that she was unable to see. Then I pushed her towards the entrance to the secret passages. Having opened the door I pushed her inside. I would have carried her as I did Annabelle, but she was a good bit heavier, and there are limits! However, when she arrived in the torture chamber she was thoroughly disoriented. I stood her on the cross, one foot at a time and secured her ankles.

"What..." she quavered.

"Silence," I roared.

Having secured her ankles, I released her hands and quickly attached first one and then the other to the top of the cross. Then I hoisted her up so that she was swinging and removed the blindfold.

I stood in front of her with the whip.

"You have been very disrespectful," I said. "And now you are going to be punished."

I laid the first lash across her thigh. Not hard, but even so she squealed. The second brought forth more squealing and the third and fourth outright blubbering. I really hadn't the heart to carry on. She clearly wasn't happy about this and so I released her. She fell into my arms crying.

"That," I told her, "was an experiment."

"It didn't feel like it," she said with feeling. "Well, it didn't hurt that much, but I didn't like it."

"No, I didn't think you would, but I had to be sure, because now you are going to be my accomplice." I took her in my arms and kissed her.

"Accomplice? Really? Where are we anyway, how did we get here? Annie told me about it, but I didn't believe her."

I kissed her again.

"Follow me."

I took her through the passages and came out in the en suite bathroom upstairs. We then went up into the tower, and on into the attics. She was, I can only put it as gobsmacked. She was full of questions and I tried to answer them all. I then showed her the dominatrix gear. First I got her into the black thigh length boots, which as I had thought fitted perfectly. A black leather corset was next, with her crotch exposed and her breasts nestling in half cups. I then put a mask on her that covered her hair like a cap, covered the top part of her face with holes for her eyes, and at the back covered her neck. Rather like the mask of Zorro, and for all I knew that is what it might well have been. I completed her out fit with elbow length gloves and another of the silk whips. Then I moved her in front of a full length mirror. She gave a loud gasp.

"Fantastic, it goes with that dungeon!" She exclaimed.

She looked at herself from all angles.

"I think an ordinary highwayman's mask would look better, with my hair up," she said.

I found her one and removed the other.

"Hmm ... my hair would be better up. Can I use the bathroom?"

"Sure, we'll go down."

She set about her hair and I asked:

"Can you find your way back down."

"No, I don't think so," she replied.

When she was ready I escorted her downstairs. I took her back into the study.