Slaves of the Amethyst part eleven
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Slaves Of The Amethyst (Part Two) free porn video
(See Part One for preamble.)
Chapter Fifty Seven.
Lady Mathom had been right. The afternoon’s tests had indeed been sterner. In fact Jennifer was coming to believe that this was quite possibly the worst afternoon in her life. Not that she had any way of determining exactly what time of day it was of course for she was blindfolded, cocooned in darkness, her wrists attached to overhead chains by the rings on her cuffs, above her head. Her back and buttocks were flaring from the latest beating she had received and she was quite alone, desolate, lonely and terribly frightened, chained naked like an a****l in some dreadful chamber beneath the ground in the catacombs of the Mathom Hall cellars. She was weeping softly although it was more from fear than pain. There was virtual silence about her punctuated only by the soft murmurings of a fire in a grate that warmed the chamber and those horrible little scuffling noises that made her whimper in terror each time she heard them. She had no idea how long she had been there. Her arms ached, held as they were above her head, and the stone floor was cold on her bare feet. She had never felt more forsaken in all her nineteen years of life.
In truth she had been expecting a fairly torrid time ever since Lady Mathom had condemned her to the cellars up in the room where she had been caned and accepted as a slave but she had not been prepared for the full horror of the ordeal. Oddly her progress through the Hall to lunch hadn’t been so bad after all. It was true that she had been naked and led on a chain with her wrists fastened in front of her but she’d been surrounded by four excited, happily chattering girls, all of whom had seen her naked before and regarded her nudity as perfectly natural. Jennifer in fact had felt happy and buoyed up by the infectious gaiety of her companions. They’d almost been an escort of honour to her and her naked bondage had felt almost like a fancy dress. She hadn’t even been terribly concerned when they had passed deferentially obsequious domestic servants. She’d known that her bottom still carried the livid marks of her Mistress’s cane but she had felt elevated and possessed of tranquil joy that she was now a true slave of the House of Mathom.
Lunch had been fun. They’d taken it in a cosy dining room on the ground floor and Jennifer had been the guest of honour. Abigail had led her to the most comfortable chair in deference to her sore bottom and the four girls had waited upon her. It had been awkward to eat with her wrists clasped together but the girls had helped her. What they would not do of course was release her wrists since she’d been under orders to that effect from Her Ladyship. Nevertheless the good company and hilarious banter had more than compensated for the inconvenience. Jennifer had managed to spill some wine over her bare breasts and the twins had insisted on cleaning it up for her… with their tongues. It had been that kind of lunch. At one point Rebecca had declared that this momentous day must be recorded for posterity and had produced a small camera. Jennifer had been horrified but in the end she had acquiesced to being photographed naked in her collar and cuffs. All the girls had wanted to pose with her either singly or in groups so Jennifer had had to suffer her nudity on film several times before Rebecca had finally put the camera away.
After they had eaten they’d repaired Jennifer’s hair and make-up and then had had a long heated discussion as to who should have the honour of delivering Jennifer to the cellars. In the end Rebecca had claimed the privilege as Jennifer’s fiancée and the other girls had sulkily conceded the honour to her. So after lunch Rebecca had taken Jennifer’s chain and led her gently back into the hallways of the Great House, down seemingly endless corridors until Jennifer felt quite lost and had come finally to an enormous wooden door that afforded access to the underworld of Mathom Hall. Rebecca had talked encouragingly to Jennifer the whole way but Jennifer had quailed when she saw the long flight of rough stone steps disappearing into the gloom below.
“I… I can’t go down there!” she’d protested.
Rebecca had hugged her “Of course you can Jenny. You’re always saying you can’t do things Jenny and you always end up doing them anyway! You’ve no idea what you can do if you put your mind to it.”
“But it looks so horrible!”
“Jenny it’s not so bad! One of the happiest things that ever happened to me happened in these cellars. You’ll hate them to begin with but you’ll love them forever afterwards. Now come along! Chin up! You’re one of us now so be brave and just follow me down the steps. I won’t let you fall.”
Jennifer had bitten her lip and had followed Rebecca into the cellars. The long stone stairway had curved around until it had emerged into a large, high vaulted, brick lined cavern where it ran along the wall before descending to the stone flagged floor. There was a large fire in an enormous fireplace at one end of the cavern and seated on a wooden chair before it was the custodian of the cellars Sebastian himself. He’d risen to greet the two young women and bowed politely. Rebecca had curtsied in her turn but Jennifer had simply stood mutely blushing with shame. Then Rebecca had surprised her by rushing over to Sebastian and kissing him. Jennifer had observed Sebastian covertly. He did not seem at all formidable her jailor. He’d been dressed in brown leather trousers and a clean white open necked shirt and his face was one of aged wisdom and kindness. He’d seemed genuinely delighted to see Rebecca and had embraced her in fatherly fashion. Rebecca had introduced Jennifer to him.
“Welcome to the cellars Miss Walstow! I do hope you will have a pleasant stay with us.” he’d said. Jennifer had shaken her head disbelievingly. A pleasant stay in those awful catacombs had been the least of her expectations. Nevertheless she had managed a murmured thank you.
Rebecca had kissed her a final time “I must leave now Jenny. Don’t be frightened! Sebastian will look after you.”
“How long will I have to stay here?”
“All week Jenny. Don’t worry we’ll all come and visit you. Be brave my sweet. It won’t be anything like as bad you are thinking it will.” Rebecca had turned to Sebastian “I’ll leave her with you now Sebastian.”
“That’s alright Miss Rebecca. I shall attend to her. She will be safe with me. Do visit again soon Miss Rebecca. You light up these chambers with your presence.”
“Thank you Sebastian. Bye for now Jenny.” And then she’d gone.
Sebastian had been kindly solicitous saying “If you’d care to step this way Miss I shall lead you to the living chambers.” He taken her chain and led her slowly warning her about patches in the floor where she might stub her toe on the rough flags. Through chamber after chamber they’d passed, all high and cavernous, some in brick and others in stone. It was a labyrinth of passageways and subterranean vaults and Jennifer had known that she would never find her way back out unaided. Many of the chambers seemed to have some particular function. Many were storage spaces. There were vaults containing large barrels, others had great stores of timber or piles of logs. They passed through a huge wine cellar and there was another chamber with a great copper vat suspended from a swinging pulley by an enormous open fire whose atmosphere was redolent of cheese. There were rooms containing boilers and mysterious machinery and Jennifer began to realise that the cellars weren’t just the awful dungeons of her imagination but an important physical component of the Hall’s infrastructure. All of the physical organs necessary to maintain the environment of the Hall were concealed in these cellars, its electricity mains, the vast central heating system, its air conditioning fans, the water mains and sanitary conduits, the gas systems for the extensive kitchens. All the raw materials and energy required for the upkeep of the Great Hall were buried in this subterranean world. You might sit upstairs in an elegant drawing room and the coals for the fire would have been brought from these cellars, the fine wine you sipped would have resided on a dusty shelf down here, the warmth from the radiators would have been pumped from the boilers down here and the electric light from the chandeliers was routed through the systems of this underworld. The delicate meal you ate originated in the materials stored down here and was cooked on rings powered by the gas that flowed through the piping of Sebastian’s domain. You would sit there at your ease and scarcely be aware of this vast throbbing heart beneath your feet that nurtured your warmth and comfort.
Jennifer had expected dank gloom and shadowy passageways but for the most part the functional areas of the cellars were surprisingly warm and well lit with electric lighting. There were, it is true, cooler regions for there were cold storage rooms and extensive refrigerators down here but they’d passed these quickly before Jennifer’s nakedness had allowed more than a mild shiver. Some chambers were more subdued in their lighting but there was usually the soft glow of gas lamps on the walls and, where appropriate, fires burning in hearths.
It was to one such large chamber that Sebastian had finally led her. It was almost circular, perhaps some twenty yards in diameter, with a plain stone floor and walls of red brick that vaulted high overhead. The red brick glowed dully in the light of small gas lights on the wall and the glow of a coke fire in a big grate. “We are nearing the regions that you will be residing within now Miss Walstow.” Sebastian had told her “Here I must leave you for a while. Would you please step to the centre of the chamber?” Jennifer had obeyed but her eyes had widened in shock when she’d seen the long chain hanging down from the roof at the centre of the vault. Sebastian had quite calmly taken the end of the chain and, by means of a clip on it, attached it to the rings of the cuffs about her wrists. Then he’d walked to the wall and pressed a large button. There’d been the soft whir of machinery and Jennifer had been horrified to see the chain lifting up toward the ceiling. For a dreadful moment she had feared that the chain would continue to rise until it lifted her clear of the floor and leave her suspended by her wrists, dangling from the roof but Sebastian had released the button when her arms had been lifted above her head.
“Are you quite all right Miss Walstow?” he’d inquired kindly. There’d been no answer to that and Jennifer had merely nodded dumbly. “And I trust you are warm enough?” That had been the least of her problems. Jennifer had been perspiring heavily. “Very well then Miss Walstow.” He’d walked over to her and quite gently lifted her long hair and pushed it forward over her shoulders to hang down across her breasts. Jennifer had been puzzled by the action but as she’d peered around over her shoulder the reason had become terrifyingly clear. Sebastian had walked over to an alcove in the wall and was contemplating a frightful array of instruments hanging on hooks there. There were long whips, martinets, leather straps, switches and canes and Jennifer had bit back the whimper of fear that had arisen in her throat. He’d seemed to take an inordinately long time over his decision but finally he’d chosen a long leather strap on a wooden handle and had turned back to Jennifer. “I fear you may experience some temporary discomfort now Miss Walstow. I shall keep it as brief as possible however. If you would be so kind as to permit me.” Jennifer had cringed in fear as Sebastian had raised the strap. The lash across her shoulder blades had driven the air from her lungs. Three more had followed it and the long chain had rattled as she jerked with the impact of them. She was mewling in pain but the next stroke delivered with force across her already sore buttocks had wrenched a howl from her gaping mouth. There’d been three more in the same place, two more on the backs of her thighs and a final four to her upper back. She’d screamed in pain and begged for mercy, disgracing herself with her piteous pleas, but Sebastian had appeared quite unmoved by her entreaties. The flogging had been mercifully short however and Sebastian had returned the strap to its hook in the alcove. “Thank you for your forbearance Miss Walstow.” he’d said incongruously and inaccurately. “I must leave you now and attend to my other duties. I shall return in due course to see to your requirements.” Then he’d taken a length of black cloth from his belt, bound it about her eyes plunging her into darkness, apologising to her for the inconvenience and she’d heard his footsteps recede into the distance.
Since then she’d hung there miserable in her fear and pain. Was this what it meant to be a slave of this dreadful house? That you could be misused and maltreated so horribly on the mere whim of your Mistress? She heard Lady Mathom tell her once more to be brave but her reserves of courage were very low now. How long must she stay here like this? How many more lashes must she endure? Her arms ached, her back and bottom were throbbing and her wrists chafed in their bonds. She cried in her darkness wanting only to be away from this awful hole in the ground. She wanted to be back in the sunlit meadows with her beloved Julie. She wanted to leave Mathom Hall with its tortuous dungeons and never return. She didn’t want to be the chattel of some frightful woman who could put her to such torment. She moaned aloud at the thought of Sebastian’s return. Would he whip her again? She couldn’t bear it! Then she heard the scuffling noises and, as the hair rose on her nape, she knew there were greater horrors here than Sebastian’s leather strap.
Rats! Jennifer was mortally afraid of rats. Those little scuttling sounds had to be rats. The cellars were probably full of them. They’d come snuffling around her ankles; perhaps bite her. They might run up her legs and she wouldn’t be able to beat them off! She was sobbing with terror now and holding her breath occasionally to listen for the scampering feet, biting back her sobs. Once the sound seemed to come near and she shouted “Shoo! Shoo! Go away you b**st!” but her cry echoed in the vault alarmingly and she receded into silence. Perhaps if she remained quiet the rats wouldn’t notice her she thought irrationally. Maybe they’d just leave her alone. Her racing imagination saw them, horrible big scaly looking things with obscene long naked tails, leering out from the walls at her helplessness. She clasped the chain securing her wrists and heaved herself up from the floor but she couldn’t hold that position long and, anyway, rats could jump couldn’t they? “Oh please, please!” she whimpered in the dark. Now she wanted nothing more than for Sebastian to return. Any whipping he might give her was preferable to being left alone with the rats. She almost wept with relief when finally she heard footsteps entering the chamber.
“Are you bearing up Miss Walstow?” she heard Sebastian say “I do apologise for leaving you to your own devices. I hope it isn’t too tedious for you.”
“There are rats here Sebastian!” she bleated. “Rats! I hate rats!”
“There are a few Miss Walstow. Very few. We keep them under control. Have no fear. They won’t harm you.”
Jennifer didn’t believe him. It had sounded like there were hundreds of them to her fevered imagination. “Please, please let me go.” she pleaded.
“I’m afraid that won’t be possible for the moment Miss Walstow. I have my instructions. It will only be temporary I assure you. Try to keep your spirits up and things will turn out for the best.” Jennifer whined in dismay. “Now I think it best if you were to drink something Miss. I shall fetch you some water.” Sebastian held a tin mug to her lips and Jennifer realised that she was parched. She gulped the tepid liquid gratefully. Sebastian let her finish the contents of the mug and then she heard him move away. She wondered what he was doing and then the strap exploded over her shoulder blades once more. It might have been twelve or fifteen lashes that he administered but Jennifer wasn’t counting. She screamed aloud at the first blow for it was unexpected and she’d had no time to gird herself for it. Thereafter she shrieked and twisted in her chains as he plied the leather over her back and buttocks. She was hanging limply as he returned the strap to its hook.
“Thank you Miss Walstow. I shall return to attend to you as soon as my duties permit.”
“No please no! Don’t go! Beat me again if you want but please don’t leave me alone!”
“I’m afraid I must Miss. It will only be a short while I promise. Be of good cheer now. You’ll not come to any harm.” And then he left. Three more times Sebastian returned to her during the course of that awful none day and though each time he returned she was beaten once more they were the only moments of light and hope in her despair. She came to fervently pray for his return, desired the lash of the leather on her flesh as far preferable to her miserable solitude and fear. Whilst he was beating her at least she was not alone. Somebody was tending to her however cruel that attention might be. She noticed that the scuttling noises that terrified her were subdued for a long time after one of his visits. The sounds of her agony frightened the rats away. The heavy crack on her naked flesh and her anguished screams became things to be desired for they kept the rats at bay. Sebastian made sure that she drank enough to replace the fluids she lost through her perspiration but once she had to plea with him again.
“Please Sebastian I need to visit the toilet.”
“One moment Miss Walstow. I will attend to it.” She heard him rummaging about somewhere and then she felt the chain holding her wrists slacken. She was not released however but the release of the tension allowed her to bend her legs. Then Sebastian was by her side and easing an enamel bowl between her legs. “I will hold it whilst you relieve yourself Miss.”
“I.. I can’t do it! Not with you here!”
“Please don’t be embarrassed Miss. I have had to assist many young ladies in the same predicament.” Jennifer moaned in despair but her bladder was full and she emptied herself into the bowl, the sound of her stream loud in the quiet chamber. “All finished now Miss Walstow?” Jennifer nodded piteously. “Excellent. If you’ll be patient a little longer I shall endeavour to clean you up.” He took the bowl away and in a minute or so returned with another bowl of warm water, a flannel and a towel to bathe her between her legs. After that the whirring of machinery signalled the resumption of her former upright position and another dozen or so lashes with the strap.
Jennifer had long since lost track of time. In fact she had lost track of everything beyond her forsaken solitude punctuated by the lashes on her body and the sinister whispering feet of the rats. She knew in some part of her that there still was a world of beauty, happiness and comfort out there but she could no longer see it. Rationally there had to be meadows glowing in the sunlight, church bells on a Sunday morning, the laughter of c***dren playing in the schoolyard, the ripple of the brook beneath the bridge with the fish jumping in the crystal waters but it all felt as if it belonged now to some world forbidden to her. Perhaps her father had been right after all and this was the price of her sins. Maybe she was condemned perpetually now to the interminable interchangeable torment of the strap and the rats and that the sweetness of a lover’s caress amongst the meadow flowers was denied to her forever more. Was this hell? But no it was purgatory and beyond purgatory lay salvation. Jennifer’s salvation came at the moment of the greatest horror of all.
She heard it coming although its footsteps were feather light. There was a small growling noise emitting from it and Jennifer could feel it stalking up on her. It had to be the biggest rat of all, the great granddaddy of all the rats of Mathom Hall. Its lesser minions must have merely been a watching audience, sniggering in anticipation, awaiting the arrival of their Lord and Master who would claim the helpless figure of this snivelling, wretched girl c***d as his own. Jennifer could feel it gloating over her, teasing her cruelly with its careful stalking. She wanted to scream at it in defiance, call aloud for help, beg Sebastian to fly to her assistance. Even as he’d beaten her he’d seemed a kindly man. Surely he couldn’t leave her to this terrible fate. But her voice failed her and only a strangled squeak of despair could she raise. It was very close to her now. She could almost feel the warmth of its grotesque body close to her leg. She prayed as she had never prayed in her life, calling upon whatever deity she could think of to avert this final penance. Then it touched her leg.
She stiffened, her muscles frozen and taut, her head thrown back and her mouth gaping in a silent scream. The b**st rubbed itself against her leg and purred, Purred! Jennifer’s head fell forward with a gasp. It was a cat! It was a cat rubbing itself affectionately against her ankles and purring in contentment. She sobbed with relief, her breast heaving, the band around her eyes soaked with tears and her nose running with mucous. “Nice pussy.” she gasped between her sobs “Nice puss. Don’t leave me now puss. Keep all the rats away. I’ll stroke you and give you a saucer of milk when my hands are free I promise. Don’t go away puss.” The cat seemed content to weave between her legs twitching its tail and the deep rumble of its purring was a balm in the quiet of the vault. It seemed a large and very hairy cat and incredibly affectionate. Jennifer raised one leg to brush her foot over the a****l’s deep coat and the purring doubled in volume as the cat’s head rubbed ecstatically against the sole of her foot. Then it circled a couple of times and then curled up on her bare feet still purring loudly. Jennifer gloried in the heavy furry warmth of her unlikely protector on her feet and cried with gratitude over her deliverance.
Then Jennifer sensed a person enter the chamber through one of the arches. The cat jumped from her feet with a little mewl and Jennifer turned her head from side to side trying to distinguish the import of her latest visitation. “Is that you Sebastian?” she called but it was not Sebastian’s heavy tread she heard but a lighter pattering of feet. Nor was the soft chuckle that of Sebastian’s deep bass voice. Then a pair of arms folded around her from behind and there was soft naked flesh upon her own, the tickle of long hair upon her shoulder and a warm and sweetly familiar whisper in her ear. “Well my darling you’ve had a rotten day haven’t you? But it’s over now. It’s going to be alright. Everything’s going to be alright.” Then Jennifer knew that there was light beyond the darkness of her incarceration after all. That even in these dungeons of torment there was joy and peace. For the voice was Rachel’s.
______________________________________________________________________
Chapter Fifty Seven.
Lady Mathom had been right. The afternoon’s tests had indeed been sterner. In fact Jennifer was coming to believe that this was quite possibly the worst afternoon in her life. Not that she had any way of determining exactly what time of day it was of course for she was blindfolded, cocooned in darkness, her wrists attached to overhead chains by the rings on her cuffs, above her head. Her back and buttocks were flaring from the latest beating she had received and she was quite alone, desolate, lonely and terribly frightened, chained naked like an a****l in some dreadful chamber beneath the ground in the catacombs of the Mathom Hall cellars. She was weeping softly although it was more from fear than pain. There was virtual silence about her punctuated only by the soft murmurings of a fire in a grate that warmed the chamber and those horrible little scuffling noises that made her whimper in terror each time she heard them. She had no idea how long she had been there. Her arms ached, held as they were above her head, and the stone floor was cold on her bare feet. She had never felt more forsaken in all her nineteen years of life.
In truth she had been expecting a fairly torrid time ever since Lady Mathom had condemned her to the cellars up in the room where she had been caned and accepted as a slave but she had not been prepared for the full horror of the ordeal. Oddly her progress through the Hall to lunch hadn’t been so bad after all. It was true that she had been naked and led on a chain with her wrists fastened in front of her but she’d been surrounded by four excited, happily chattering girls, all of whom had seen her naked before and regarded her nudity as perfectly natural. Jennifer in fact had felt happy and buoyed up by the infectious gaiety of her companions. They’d almost been an escort of honour to her and her naked bondage had felt almost like a fancy dress. She hadn’t even been terribly concerned when they had passed deferentially obsequious domestic servants. She’d known that her bottom still carried the livid marks of her Mistress’s cane but she had felt elevated and possessed of tranquil joy that she was now a true slave of the House of Mathom.
Lunch had been fun. They’d taken it in a cosy dining room on the ground floor and Jennifer had been the guest of honour. Abigail had led her to the most comfortable chair in deference to her sore bottom and the four girls had waited upon her. It had been awkward to eat with her wrists clasped together but the girls had helped her. What they would not do of course was release her wrists since she’d been under orders to that effect from Her Ladyship. Nevertheless the good company and hilarious banter had more than compensated for the inconvenience. Jennifer had managed to spill some wine over her bare breasts and the twins had insisted on cleaning it up for her… with their tongues. It had been that kind of lunch. At one point Rebecca had declared that this momentous day must be recorded for posterity and had produced a small camera. Jennifer had been horrified but in the end she had acquiesced to being photographed naked in her collar and cuffs. All the girls had wanted to pose with her either singly or in groups so Jennifer had had to suffer her nudity on film several times before Rebecca had finally put the camera away.
After they had eaten they’d repaired Jennifer’s hair and make-up and then had had a long heated discussion as to who should have the honour of delivering Jennifer to the cellars. In the end Rebecca had claimed the privilege as Jennifer’s fiancée and the other girls had sulkily conceded the honour to her. So after lunch Rebecca had taken Jennifer’s chain and led her gently back into the hallways of the Great House, down seemingly endless corridors until Jennifer felt quite lost and had come finally to an enormous wooden door that afforded access to the underworld of Mathom Hall. Rebecca had talked encouragingly to Jennifer the whole way but Jennifer had quailed when she saw the long flight of rough stone steps disappearing into the gloom below.
“I… I can’t go down there!” she’d protested.
Rebecca had hugged her “Of course you can Jenny. You’re always saying you can’t do things Jenny and you always end up doing them anyway! You’ve no idea what you can do if you put your mind to it.”
“But it looks so horrible!”
“Jenny it’s not so bad! One of the happiest things that ever happened to me happened in these cellars. You’ll hate them to begin with but you’ll love them forever afterwards. Now come along! Chin up! You’re one of us now so be brave and just follow me down the steps. I won’t let you fall.”
Jennifer had bitten her lip and had followed Rebecca into the cellars. The long stone stairway had curved around until it had emerged into a large, high vaulted, brick lined cavern where it ran along the wall before descending to the stone flagged floor. There was a large fire in an enormous fireplace at one end of the cavern and seated on a wooden chair before it was the custodian of the cellars Sebastian himself. He’d risen to greet the two young women and bowed politely. Rebecca had curtsied in her turn but Jennifer had simply stood mutely blushing with shame. Then Rebecca had surprised her by rushing over to Sebastian and kissing him. Jennifer had observed Sebastian covertly. He did not seem at all formidable her jailor. He’d been dressed in brown leather trousers and a clean white open necked shirt and his face was one of aged wisdom and kindness. He’d seemed genuinely delighted to see Rebecca and had embraced her in fatherly fashion. Rebecca had introduced Jennifer to him.
“Welcome to the cellars Miss Walstow! I do hope you will have a pleasant stay with us.” he’d said. Jennifer had shaken her head disbelievingly. A pleasant stay in those awful catacombs had been the least of her expectations. Nevertheless she had managed a murmured thank you.
Rebecca had kissed her a final time “I must leave now Jenny. Don’t be frightened! Sebastian will look after you.”
“How long will I have to stay here?”
“All week Jenny. Don’t worry we’ll all come and visit you. Be brave my sweet. It won’t be anything like as bad you are thinking it will.” Rebecca had turned to Sebastian “I’ll leave her with you now Sebastian.”
“That’s alright Miss Rebecca. I shall attend to her. She will be safe with me. Do visit again soon Miss Rebecca. You light up these chambers with your presence.”
“Thank you Sebastian. Bye for now Jenny.” And then she’d gone.
Sebastian had been kindly solicitous saying “If you’d care to step this way Miss I shall lead you to the living chambers.” He taken her chain and led her slowly warning her about patches in the floor where she might stub her toe on the rough flags. Through chamber after chamber they’d passed, all high and cavernous, some in brick and others in stone. It was a labyrinth of passageways and subterranean vaults and Jennifer had known that she would never find her way back out unaided. Many of the chambers seemed to have some particular function. Many were storage spaces. There were vaults containing large barrels, others had great stores of timber or piles of logs. They passed through a huge wine cellar and there was another chamber with a great copper vat suspended from a swinging pulley by an enormous open fire whose atmosphere was redolent of cheese. There were rooms containing boilers and mysterious machinery and Jennifer began to realise that the cellars weren’t just the awful dungeons of her imagination but an important physical component of the Hall’s infrastructure. All of the physical organs necessary to maintain the environment of the Hall were concealed in these cellars, its electricity mains, the vast central heating system, its air conditioning fans, the water mains and sanitary conduits, the gas systems for the extensive kitchens. All the raw materials and energy required for the upkeep of the Great Hall were buried in this subterranean world. You might sit upstairs in an elegant drawing room and the coals for the fire would have been brought from these cellars, the fine wine you sipped would have resided on a dusty shelf down here, the warmth from the radiators would have been pumped from the boilers down here and the electric light from the chandeliers was routed through the systems of this underworld. The delicate meal you ate originated in the materials stored down here and was cooked on rings powered by the gas that flowed through the piping of Sebastian’s domain. You would sit there at your ease and scarcely be aware of this vast throbbing heart beneath your feet that nurtured your warmth and comfort.
Jennifer had expected dank gloom and shadowy passageways but for the most part the functional areas of the cellars were surprisingly warm and well lit with electric lighting. There were, it is true, cooler regions for there were cold storage rooms and extensive refrigerators down here but they’d passed these quickly before Jennifer’s nakedness had allowed more than a mild shiver. Some chambers were more subdued in their lighting but there was usually the soft glow of gas lamps on the walls and, where appropriate, fires burning in hearths.
It was to one such large chamber that Sebastian had finally led her. It was almost circular, perhaps some twenty yards in diameter, with a plain stone floor and walls of red brick that vaulted high overhead. The red brick glowed dully in the light of small gas lights on the wall and the glow of a coke fire in a big grate. “We are nearing the regions that you will be residing within now Miss Walstow.” Sebastian had told her “Here I must leave you for a while. Would you please step to the centre of the chamber?” Jennifer had obeyed but her eyes had widened in shock when she’d seen the long chain hanging down from the roof at the centre of the vault. Sebastian had quite calmly taken the end of the chain and, by means of a clip on it, attached it to the rings of the cuffs about her wrists. Then he’d walked to the wall and pressed a large button. There’d been the soft whir of machinery and Jennifer had been horrified to see the chain lifting up toward the ceiling. For a dreadful moment she had feared that the chain would continue to rise until it lifted her clear of the floor and leave her suspended by her wrists, dangling from the roof but Sebastian had released the button when her arms had been lifted above her head.
“Are you quite all right Miss Walstow?” he’d inquired kindly. There’d been no answer to that and Jennifer had merely nodded dumbly. “And I trust you are warm enough?” That had been the least of her problems. Jennifer had been perspiring heavily. “Very well then Miss Walstow.” He’d walked over to her and quite gently lifted her long hair and pushed it forward over her shoulders to hang down across her breasts. Jennifer had been puzzled by the action but as she’d peered around over her shoulder the reason had become terrifyingly clear. Sebastian had walked over to an alcove in the wall and was contemplating a frightful array of instruments hanging on hooks there. There were long whips, martinets, leather straps, switches and canes and Jennifer had bit back the whimper of fear that had arisen in her throat. He’d seemed to take an inordinately long time over his decision but finally he’d chosen a long leather strap on a wooden handle and had turned back to Jennifer. “I fear you may experience some temporary discomfort now Miss Walstow. I shall keep it as brief as possible however. If you would be so kind as to permit me.” Jennifer had cringed in fear as Sebastian had raised the strap. The lash across her shoulder blades had driven the air from her lungs. Three more had followed it and the long chain had rattled as she jerked with the impact of them. She was mewling in pain but the next stroke delivered with force across her already sore buttocks had wrenched a howl from her gaping mouth. There’d been three more in the same place, two more on the backs of her thighs and a final four to her upper back. She’d screamed in pain and begged for mercy, disgracing herself with her piteous pleas, but Sebastian had appeared quite unmoved by her entreaties. The flogging had been mercifully short however and Sebastian had returned the strap to its hook in the alcove. “Thank you for your forbearance Miss Walstow.” he’d said incongruously and inaccurately. “I must leave you now and attend to my other duties. I shall return in due course to see to your requirements.” Then he’d taken a length of black cloth from his belt, bound it about her eyes plunging her into darkness, apologising to her for the inconvenience and she’d heard his footsteps recede into the distance.
Since then she’d hung there miserable in her fear and pain. Was this what it meant to be a slave of this dreadful house? That you could be misused and maltreated so horribly on the mere whim of your Mistress? She heard Lady Mathom tell her once more to be brave but her reserves of courage were very low now. How long must she stay here like this? How many more lashes must she endure? Her arms ached, her back and bottom were throbbing and her wrists chafed in their bonds. She cried in her darkness wanting only to be away from this awful hole in the ground. She wanted to be back in the sunlit meadows with her beloved Julie. She wanted to leave Mathom Hall with its tortuous dungeons and never return. She didn’t want to be the chattel of some frightful woman who could put her to such torment. She moaned aloud at the thought of Sebastian’s return. Would he whip her again? She couldn’t bear it! Then she heard the scuffling noises and, as the hair rose on her nape, she knew there were greater horrors here than Sebastian’s leather strap.
Rats! Jennifer was mortally afraid of rats. Those little scuttling sounds had to be rats. The cellars were probably full of them. They’d come snuffling around her ankles; perhaps bite her. They might run up her legs and she wouldn’t be able to beat them off! She was sobbing with terror now and holding her breath occasionally to listen for the scampering feet, biting back her sobs. Once the sound seemed to come near and she shouted “Shoo! Shoo! Go away you b**st!” but her cry echoed in the vault alarmingly and she receded into silence. Perhaps if she remained quiet the rats wouldn’t notice her she thought irrationally. Maybe they’d just leave her alone. Her racing imagination saw them, horrible big scaly looking things with obscene long naked tails, leering out from the walls at her helplessness. She clasped the chain securing her wrists and heaved herself up from the floor but she couldn’t hold that position long and, anyway, rats could jump couldn’t they? “Oh please, please!” she whimpered in the dark. Now she wanted nothing more than for Sebastian to return. Any whipping he might give her was preferable to being left alone with the rats. She almost wept with relief when finally she heard footsteps entering the chamber.
“Are you bearing up Miss Walstow?” she heard Sebastian say “I do apologise for leaving you to your own devices. I hope it isn’t too tedious for you.”
“There are rats here Sebastian!” she bleated. “Rats! I hate rats!”
“There are a few Miss Walstow. Very few. We keep them under control. Have no fear. They won’t harm you.”
Jennifer didn’t believe him. It had sounded like there were hundreds of them to her fevered imagination. “Please, please let me go.” she pleaded.
“I’m afraid that won’t be possible for the moment Miss Walstow. I have my instructions. It will only be temporary I assure you. Try to keep your spirits up and things will turn out for the best.” Jennifer whined in dismay. “Now I think it best if you were to drink something Miss. I shall fetch you some water.” Sebastian held a tin mug to her lips and Jennifer realised that she was parched. She gulped the tepid liquid gratefully. Sebastian let her finish the contents of the mug and then she heard him move away. She wondered what he was doing and then the strap exploded over her shoulder blades once more. It might have been twelve or fifteen lashes that he administered but Jennifer wasn’t counting. She screamed aloud at the first blow for it was unexpected and she’d had no time to gird herself for it. Thereafter she shrieked and twisted in her chains as he plied the leather over her back and buttocks. She was hanging limply as he returned the strap to its hook.
“Thank you Miss Walstow. I shall return to attend to you as soon as my duties permit.”
“No please no! Don’t go! Beat me again if you want but please don’t leave me alone!”
“I’m afraid I must Miss. It will only be a short while I promise. Be of good cheer now. You’ll not come to any harm.” And then he left. Three more times Sebastian returned to her during the course of that awful none day and though each time he returned she was beaten once more they were the only moments of light and hope in her despair. She came to fervently pray for his return, desired the lash of the leather on her flesh as far preferable to her miserable solitude and fear. Whilst he was beating her at least she was not alone. Somebody was tending to her however cruel that attention might be. She noticed that the scuttling noises that terrified her were subdued for a long time after one of his visits. The sounds of her agony frightened the rats away. The heavy crack on her naked flesh and her anguished screams became things to be desired for they kept the rats at bay. Sebastian made sure that she drank enough to replace the fluids she lost through her perspiration but once she had to plea with him again.
“Please Sebastian I need to visit the toilet.”
“One moment Miss Walstow. I will attend to it.” She heard him rummaging about somewhere and then she felt the chain holding her wrists slacken. She was not released however but the release of the tension allowed her to bend her legs. Then Sebastian was by her side and easing an enamel bowl between her legs. “I will hold it whilst you relieve yourself Miss.”
“I.. I can’t do it! Not with you here!”
“Please don’t be embarrassed Miss. I have had to assist many young ladies in the same predicament.” Jennifer moaned in despair but her bladder was full and she emptied herself into the bowl, the sound of her stream loud in the quiet chamber. “All finished now Miss Walstow?” Jennifer nodded piteously. “Excellent. If you’ll be patient a little longer I shall endeavour to clean you up.” He took the bowl away and in a minute or so returned with another bowl of warm water, a flannel and a towel to bathe her between her legs. After that the whirring of machinery signalled the resumption of her former upright position and another dozen or so lashes with the strap.
Jennifer had long since lost track of time. In fact she had lost track of everything beyond her forsaken solitude punctuated by the lashes on her body and the sinister whispering feet of the rats. She knew in some part of her that there still was a world of beauty, happiness and comfort out there but she could no longer see it. Rationally there had to be meadows glowing in the sunlight, church bells on a Sunday morning, the laughter of c***dren playing in the schoolyard, the ripple of the brook beneath the bridge with the fish jumping in the crystal waters but it all felt as if it belonged now to some world forbidden to her. Perhaps her father had been right after all and this was the price of her sins. Maybe she was condemned perpetually now to the interminable interchangeable torment of the strap and the rats and that the sweetness of a lover’s caress amongst the meadow flowers was denied to her forever more. Was this hell? But no it was purgatory and beyond purgatory lay salvation. Jennifer’s salvation came at the moment of the greatest horror of all.
She heard it coming although its footsteps were feather light. There was a small growling noise emitting from it and Jennifer could feel it stalking up on her. It had to be the biggest rat of all, the great granddaddy of all the rats of Mathom Hall. Its lesser minions must have merely been a watching audience, sniggering in anticipation, awaiting the arrival of their Lord and Master who would claim the helpless figure of this snivelling, wretched girl c***d as his own. Jennifer could feel it gloating over her, teasing her cruelly with its careful stalking. She wanted to scream at it in defiance, call aloud for help, beg Sebastian to fly to her assistance. Even as he’d beaten her he’d seemed a kindly man. Surely he couldn’t leave her to this terrible fate. But her voice failed her and only a strangled squeak of despair could she raise. It was very close to her now. She could almost feel the warmth of its grotesque body close to her leg. She prayed as she had never prayed in her life, calling upon whatever deity she could think of to avert this final penance. Then it touched her leg.
She stiffened, her muscles frozen and taut, her head thrown back and her mouth gaping in a silent scream. The b**st rubbed itself against her leg and purred, Purred! Jennifer’s head fell forward with a gasp. It was a cat! It was a cat rubbing itself affectionately against her ankles and purring in contentment. She sobbed with relief, her breast heaving, the band around her eyes soaked with tears and her nose running with mucous. “Nice pussy.” she gasped between her sobs “Nice puss. Don’t leave me now puss. Keep all the rats away. I’ll stroke you and give you a saucer of milk when my hands are free I promise. Don’t go away puss.” The cat seemed content to weave between her legs twitching its tail and the deep rumble of its purring was a balm in the quiet of the vault. It seemed a large and very hairy cat and incredibly affectionate. Jennifer raised one leg to brush her foot over the a****l’s deep coat and the purring doubled in volume as the cat’s head rubbed ecstatically against the sole of her foot. Then it circled a couple of times and then curled up on her bare feet still purring loudly. Jennifer gloried in the heavy furry warmth of her unlikely protector on her feet and cried with gratitude over her deliverance.
Then Jennifer sensed a person enter the chamber through one of the arches. The cat jumped from her feet with a little mewl and Jennifer turned her head from side to side trying to distinguish the import of her latest visitation. “Is that you Sebastian?” she called but it was not Sebastian’s heavy tread she heard but a lighter pattering of feet. Nor was the soft chuckle that of Sebastian’s deep bass voice. Then a pair of arms folded around her from behind and there was soft naked flesh upon her own, the tickle of long hair upon her shoulder and a warm and sweetly familiar whisper in her ear. “Well my darling you’ve had a rotten day haven’t you? But it’s over now. It’s going to be alright. Everything’s going to be alright.” Then Jennifer knew that there was light beyond the darkness of her incarceration after all. That even in these dungeons of torment there was joy and peace. For the voice was Rachel’s.
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