Arresting Dominance

by Cassidy Browning

  Jeremy laughed as they filed into the dungeon. “Fantastic. Our lucky number.”

  Chapter 11

  Their station was one of the bondage tables. It was covered in blue leather with eyebolts set at each of the corners and at two points along each side. Sitting in the center was a large paper grocery bag stapled along the top. Carly and Dennis were at station number four, a spanking bench on the right. To their left Steph, Brody, and Alice were at station number two, which was a stand-up wooden frame filled with a chain spiderweb. Past them Phoenix and Jodi had station number one, a St. Andrew’s cross. Each of the numbered stations had a bag similar in appearance to theirs waiting for its contestants.

  Ginny turned to her guys. They looked ready to start, but their serious faces gave her a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. Their relationship was on rocky ground. She didn’t want to lose them over a stupid argument. Stepping up to Jeremy she asked, “Sir, could I have a kiss, please?”

  He looked at her for a long minute and then closed the distance between them, bending his head until his lips pressed to hers. His kisses had always been filled with heat and lust before. This one, while still soft and loving, lacked the passion that she had been growing accustomed to.

  Pulling back slightly, she said the only thing that filled her mind. “I’m sorry.”

  He responded in a flat tone. “Nothing to be sorry for, my dear. My mistake.” Taking a step back, he resumed looking around the room as if nothing were bothering him.

  Liam grabbed her arm, pulled her into his embrace, and planted a kiss on her lips. “Relax, beautiful,” he whispered. “He’ll come around once he pulls his head out of his ass.”

  She smiled up at him and then they both turned at the sound of Liege’s voice. “Okay, folks. Let’s get this party started.” He laughed at his own joke. “I know you’ve all had the rules explained to you, so I won’t go over them again. But for shits and giggles we will have each group open their bags one at a time and tell everyone what goodies you were given. That way we’re all in on the fun and can appreciate your ingenuity. Phoenix, I believe you’re number one, so let’s start with you.”

  The man called Phoenix bent down and picked up his bag. He popped the staples, holding it closed, peeked inside, and then closed it again quickly. As they all watched he turned toward Liege with an incredulous look. “Really?”

  Smiling broadly, Liege answered, “Don’t blame the messenger. You all have Master Karl to thank for your supplies. If you have complaints I suggest you address them to him. I understand he loves a good complaint.”

  The room erupted into laughter at that and all eyes turned to where Master Karl was standing by the stage. To his credit, Master Karl scowled around the room dramatically before breaking out in a huge grin. “Yes, Phoenix, I just couldn’t resist. Have fun.”

  He laughed along with the rest of the crowd at the look on Phoenix’s face. Ginny guessed they were now as curious as she was as to just what that bag contained.

  Shaking his head in mock disgust, Phoenix opened the bag again and with a dramatic flourish pulled a small stuffed fox out of the bag. Again the room erupted in laughter as Jodi grabbed the stuffed animal out of his hands with a squeal. “Oh, how cute! Can I keep it?”

  Her Dominant put a hand over his face and shook his head. “Only if you promise to feed it every day.”

  Ginny grinned. It was so easy to think that people who engaged in BDSM must be mean and damaged. Instead, she’d found the majority of the members of the leather community to be some of the nicest and most caring people she’d ever met—just like these two and their good-natured bantering.

  Phoenix finished pulling the remaining items out of the bag. They turned out to be an oversized plastic comb, six golf tees, and what looked like a section of Styrofoam tubing that seemed to be about an inch in diameter. It appeared to be about two feet long and solid. Ginny couldn’t help but wonder what kind of scene he would make out of that. She hoped she’d get the chance to see.

  The amused voice of Liege floated out to quiet the crowd. “That looks like fun, Phoenix. Good luck to you and Jodi. Okay, Mistress Alice. I believe you are at station two. Would you please share what goodies you’ve inherited?”

  She shifted her attention along with everyone else to the woman at the play station next to theirs. Alice pointed to Brody and then at the bag without saying a word. From the immediate response to her gesture Ginny guessed that the older woman must have given her two submissives their orders beforehand. Brody opened the bag and immediately handed the contents to Steph, who held each item up high for everyone to see. They worked smoothly, like a well-oiled machine, even though Ginny knew they’d only been together a few days. Looking at the three of them gave her hope for the eventual success of her own threesome. She glanced quickly at her two guys and then back to the action, not wanting to miss anything.

  The first item Steph held up was a tube of bright red lipstick. Ginny saw Brody’s head drop in resignation, but there was a sly smile playing across his lips. Next he pulled out two wooden rulers, the kind with a metal edge along one side. Then came a can of silly string and a wooden paddle with a rubber ball attached to it by an elastic cord. After Steph had held up the last item for everyone to see, Alice said, “Thank you, Master Karl. We will try to make you proud.”

  “I have no doubt you will, Mistress Alice.” Karl turned toward their station. “Gentlemen and lady, if you will be so kind as to share your bag of goodies now.”

  “Of course.” Liam plucked up the paper bag and opened it quickly, dumping the contents onto the table in front of him. He looked at the pile for a few seconds, then recovered and reached out and picked up a sealed package and held it aloft. “A package of six long, skinny balloons, uninflated as of yet. We also have six pipe cleaners in various colors, a four-piece wooden spoon set and, last but not least, a plastic kazoo.”

  Ginny shuddered inside at the sight of the balloons. She hated balloons. The look of them, the smell of them, their squeaky sound, and of course the creepy clowns that usually came with them. She had never understood the sadistic nature of many parents to subject their children to such horrors and usually at such a young age. It was no wonder the world was such a screwed-up place. She was pulled from her thoughts by Jeremy’s voice. “Since we have a kazoo, the rest of you may just want to quit now. We all know the guy with the kazoo always wins.”

  Another round of laughter met his joke. She hoped that meant he was starting to let their argument go and lighten up for the competition. It could be a lot of fun if they all just relaxed and had a good time with it.

  Liege chuckled. “I’m sure the rest will take that into consideration, Jeremy. But on the off-hand chance that they don’t all quit outright at that portent of doom, let’s move on to our last set of contestants and see what they got, shall we?”

  The crowd all swiveled to face Dennis and Carly at their station. Dennis retrieved the bag from between the legs of the spanking bench that Carly was leaning on and looked into it. Before he removed the first item, however, he called out, “Hey, Jeremy. You are sadly mistaken, my friend. For I have been given the antidote to the plastic kazoo.” He reached into the bag and thrust his hand high into the air above his head. “I have glow sticks. Two of them, in fact. Everyone knows glow sticks trump a kazoo. Would you like to bow down now and kiss my boots in defeat?”

  Before Jeremy could answer the crowd roared with laughter and catcalls. The group really seemed to be eating up the theatrics and good-natured ribbing the contestants were giving one another. When there was finally a pause in the commotion, Jeremy answered, “So let me get this straight. I can quit now or take an ass-kicking at the hands of glow sticks. Is that right?”

  Grinning broadly, Dennis shot back, “Yeah, that about sums it up.”

  “Okay.” Jeremy shrugged. “I gotta tell you, quitting does sound easier. But, like most of the people here I just might enjoy a good ass-kicking, so I think I’ll stick it
out and see what happens.”

  Ginny sighed in relief. It seemed like this was going to be a fun night after all. Dennis finished showing the remaining items they had been given, which turned out to be a bag of large red satin bows, six wooden clothes pins, and an oversized joke flyswatter. This one was shaped like an enormous bee.

  Liege called out to the assembled crowd, “Okay, let’s get going. Contestants, you have a few minutes to brainstorm and negotiate your scene and then we will start the competition. Once begun, there is no stopping until the thirty-minute time limit has been reached. Then we will have everyone vote for the best scene. The winners will be awarded their prize and the dungeon will be opened to general play shortly thereafter.”

  Ginny turned to her men. “Okay, what do we do with this stuff?”

  Jeremy snapped his fingers. “I have it. We got lucky getting this table. All right, we start with using four of the six balloons and the wooden spoons to secure Ginny to the table spread-eagle.”

  Ginny stared at him. “How the hell are you going to do that with balloons and wooden spoons?”

  He grinned at her. “Well, we stick a spoon through the eyebolt at each corner and then use one un-inflated balloon for each wrist or ankle. Since they stretch, we can make a tie on the limb and then secure the two ends to the wooden spoon on either side of the eyebolt. That way they’ve been used and are practical without causing any discomfort.”

  “That isn’t bad.” Liam nodded, frowning thoughtfully. “Was that it or did you have more in mind?”

  “Oh, I have more. Wait ‘til you hear this,” Jeremy went on excitedly. “We take those last two balloons and blow them up. Then we attach three of the pipe cleaners to one end of each as falls. That way I can use them as Florentine floggers while you play ‘Flight of the Valkyries’ on the kazoo.”

  “Damn, I wouldn’t have thought it possible but that is well thought out and was quick. Very nicely done, buddy.”

  Master Karl’s voice boomed through the room. “Okay, folks. Let’s get this competition started. Conduct your scenes for the next thirty minutes and then everyone will vote on the one they enjoyed the most. They will be judging on the creative use of your items, the connectivity between the participants, and the overall aesthetics of the scene. Have fun, everyone, and may the best team win.”

  “You heard the man. Let’s get you naked.” Jeremy wiggled his eyebrows at Ginny, although his usual lusty undertones seemed dulled to her ears. She undressed quickly and tried to block out the thought that everyone was looking at her. She knew her men found her attractive, and if they wanted to show her off then it was her gift to them to do as they asked.

  She followed their directions and allowed them to secure her wrists and ankles to the table as they had discussed. She was surprised that it wasn’t more uncomfortable but it did take a lot longer than she would have expected since one of the balloons kept breaking. Jeremy had to tie the pieces back together three or four times to make it all work as he intended.

  While the guys were diligently securing her to the bondage table, she turned her head to where Phoenix and Jodi’s scene was taking place. She couldn’t see very well because of the people standing around watching, but as far as she could tell Phoenix had driven all of the golf tees through the Styrofoam tube so they ran down the length of it with their points sticking out the other side. He had Jodi leaning against the St. Andrew’s cross and seemed to be alternating between using the plastic comb as an improvised paddle, the golf tee and Styrofoam device as a scratching toy, and the stuffed fox as a fur mitt. From what she could see of the girl’s face, the differing sensations seemed to be appreciated. Even from her awkward position across the room she could see the intense connection between the Dom and his submissive.

  Pulling her gaze from their scene, she allowed it to drift over to the chain spiderweb where Alice, Steph, and Brody were scening. It looked like they had Brody grabbing the chains above his head and she knew from her own limited experience that Alice had likely told him to do that and not to let go until she gave him permission. It was a form of predicament bondage in which the bottom literally puts him or herself in bondage through their top’s command. It could be a very rewarding way to show trust to one’s partner. The bottom could let go at any time but usually didn’t, because they wanted to show their Dominant the love and respect of following their orders.

  As she looked closer she could see that Steph had taken apart the paddleball game and was using the rubber band and sphere to make a crude ballgag, which she was tying into place. Just then a couple of people shifted position, allowing Ginny to see more of the scene next to them. As she watched, Alice finished peeling the thin strips of metal from the edges of the rulers and was using them to bind the whole thing together. Brody jerked and Ginny craned her neck for a better look. She was surprised to see that Alice had made a primitive ball stretcher with the rulers, with one on either side of the young man’s testicles. The rulers were placed between his penis and balls and lashed together with the metal edging.

  As Alice finished attaching it, she stroked his rigid cock a few times, pumping her hand up and down his length. From the look of ecstasy on his face Ginny surmised that the ball stretcher wasn’t too uncomfortable. The older woman stood suddenly and grabbed the wooden paddle left over from the dismantled toy and began placing swats at various parts of his thighs and chest. Brody twitched at each blow but never once let go of the chains above his head. To Ginny’s surprise Steph began drawing hearts all over him with the lipstick. When she was finished with that she smiled and then seemed to take delight in spraying the can of silly string over and around his hard cock.

  The sharp sound of something striking flesh to her left caused her to turn in that direction. She saw that Dennis had Carly bent over the spanking bench. It seemed that he had taken the large satin bows apart to fashion a rope of sorts of the bright red material. He had then taken that homemade rope and created a very sexy set of arm binders, securing her arms together behind her back. He held them up with one hand while he used the silly plastic bee swatter on her exposed ass.

  A flash of light caused her to look closer at her friend and she had to stifle a laugh. Dennis had activated the glow sticks and attached them to two of the wooden clothespins, clipping them to her nipples. The pinching ends held them securely in place and the glow sticks dangled a few inches down on a short length of more of the red ribbon. Each time he swatted her ass she would jerk, causing the glow sticks to swing. It was very artistic in the darkened dungeon and the movements had to add to the sensation.

  The sound just above her of someone playing “Flight of the Valkyries” on a cheap plastic kazoo had her focusing back on her own partners. She couldn’t help but laugh as she watched Liam begin to march around the table playing the stupid child’s instrument and waving his arms as if he were conducting a full symphony. Glancing over at Jeremy, she saw that he had constructed two floggers from the remaining balloons, blown up to full length with the pipe cleaners twisted around the ends and sticking out like reaching fingers.

  The first few taps of the crude floggers tickled more than anything else, but the troubled look on Jeremy’s face really bothered her. Her smile faded a bit but she rallied and worked to get it back. Trying to catch his eye, she mouthed, “I love you.”

  He suddenly stilled. “As much as Rick and Cindy?” he snapped out. She could see his arms quivering with suppressed anger and the muscles of his jaw were bunched again.

  “What?” she asked, confused.

  “We’re just an experiment to make sure things will work with them, right?” he growled in a low voice.

  Ginny sighed. “I thought we had settled all of that earlier today. I love you and Liam.”

  Suddenly Liam’s upper body was leaning over her from the other side. “What the fuck are you doing?”

  Jeremy’s voice was rising as he all but shouted, “I won’t be made a fool of. We both heard her. She loves them. She even sai
d she shouldn’t have left Redding to come back here. I thought we could make her love us but I was wrong. Hell, we even uprooted our lives just to have her leave us again. Fuck it!” He shouted the last words and threw the balloons down to the ground.

  Ginny’s own anger flashed back to life as if their earlier argument had never ended. She tore her wrists loose and spat, “Too late on not being a fool, asshole. I tried to tell you earlier that you took my comments out of context. That I love you and want to be with you. At least I did.”

  Liam put down the kazoo and held out his hands in a calming gesture. “Let’s not say things we can’t unsay. This is neither the time nor the place for this.”

  Ginny had freed both wrists now and was working furiously on her ankles. She stopped her actions long enough to look up at him. “Too late. He isn’t mature enough for a real relationship.”

  “Oh, and playing us against that couple is mature? Right!” Jeremy snarled back.

  She finished freeing herself and hopped off the table, snatching her dress from the floor. “I don’t know what the fuck you mean, uprooting your lives for me. You leave town in two days. That isn’t much of an uprooting. But regardless, don’t bother on my account. I’m done.” She spun on her heel and stomped out of the club, barely registering the shocked expressions on the faces of the people she passed on her way.

  * * * *

  “So they broke up again?” Steph took a seat at the counter and nodded toward the kitchen that Ginny had just disappeared through.

  “Yes.” Carly scowled in the general direction of her fleeing employee. “She won’t talk about what happened, and I was too busy being trussed up in plastic ribbons and beaten with a goofy fly swatter to pay attention. Did you happen to see?”

  “No, I was helping Ma’am. Congratulations on winning, by the way. Not that Ma’am needed any help. Did you see Brody by the time she was done with him?” She laughed. “He was covered in silly string, around his bits, in his hair, and I had drawn hearts all over him in lipstick. I knew it would come off and not mess up the modeling Mistress is going to let us do for Charlie. It was a lot of fun. But I heard Ginny and her guys had quite a blowup in the middle of it. How’s Ginny holding up?”