Again both of them heard the hallway gate, a Warden was coming. Cathy and Paula quickly knelt. The Warden stopped at the cell door, then in clipped words he ordered, "Both of you, stand and approach the door." Paula gracefully rose to her feet, swiftly moving to the door with short steps. Cathy stood behind her, trying to copy Paula's graceful movements as best she could but hampered by the handcuffs on her wrists. Both stopped at the door, facing the Warden. Neither one moved or spoke, waiting for the next order. "You," he pointed to Paula, "turn around. Put your hands behind your back."

The Warden took out a set of handcuffs from a pouch on his belt. He fastened Paula's hands behind her, reaching through the bars. Then he turned to Cathy. "Hold out your hands," he ordered. He reached in and unlocked her left wrist. "Turn around, hands behind your back." He locked her wrists together again, this time behind her back. Then he crouched down, reaching through the bars to lock leg chains around Cathy's ankles. He reached over and placed an identical set of leg chains on Paula. Finished with their restraints he stood again, unlocking their door. He took Paula out first, locking one end of a chain to Paula's handcuffs, and then motioned for Paula to come through the door. He locked the other end of the chain to Cathy's handcuffs, linking the two of them together. Very practical, thought Cathy, they couldn't dash off in opposite directions.

The Warden closed the cell door behind them, and then started down the hallway, his hand on Paula's upper arm. Chained together, Cathy had to follow. She watched Paula closely, trying to emulate her poise and walk as Paula took short quick steps, working within the limits of her leg chains to keep up with the Warden's pace. Cathy struggled to keep up, her own ankle chains sharply limiting her ability to walk.

As they walked down the corridor, Cathy was uncertain of what was to come. Was she being taken to a class, to face the dreaded teachers? Or worse, to be punished? She thought back to when the meal came, had she sensed some kind of disappointment in the guard? Or the way her hand had rubbed against the belt, was that not allowed? What would they do to her and would Paula be punished too, because Cathy had not learned quickly enough? Whatever was about to happen, she knew she could not stop it.

The Warden led Cathy and Paula down an empty corridor, destination unknown. From long practice Paula was able to match the pace, but Cathy could not keep up with the guard, stumbling several times as the chain linking her ankles pulled taut, threatening to make her trip and fall. The Warden caught her and kept her from falling, but a quick glance by Cathy revealed a frown on the Warden's face. He slowed down, but she knew he was not pleased. Cathy concentrated on the short, swift steps Paula was taking, trying to copy them. It seemed she would even have to learn how to walk again.

Twice they stopped while the Warden unlocked a barred gate in the corridor. The point of all the security wasn't lost on Cathy. Escaping from a cell would get her no farther than the next door. As far as she could see every door required a key, and only the Wardens had the keys. Beyond that there were no signs or markers of any sort in the corridors or next to the doors. Cathy realized she couldn't even retrace her steps back to the cell she and Paula had been in. Somehow the Wardens knew exactly where to go, but she couldn't figure out how they did it.

The Warden finally stopped at a barred gate off the corridor, opened it, led the two girls through, and locked it behind them. They walked down yet another hallway, passing several cells with three or four girls in each. Cathy saw that all were kneeling, dressed in nothing more than a collar and belt, the wide strip of metal prominent between their spread legs. The Warden stopped at a cell door, opened the door, pushed Cathy and Paula inside, then shut the door. Both girls stood just inside the door, not moving, waiting for the next command. The Warden reached through the bars, freed their ankles, and then removed their handcuffs. He turned and walked away.

"Okay, you can relax now," Paula told Cathy. "This is Beth," Paula pointed to the nearer woman, "and this is 'Twenty-Three.' Her Master does not allow her to use a name, so the Wardens have assigned a number to her." The other, younger nameless woman looked up, nodded to Cathy. Cathy looked over to Paula. "This is a dormitory. The Wardens will bring us some cushions and bedding in a while, then we will be allowed to sleep. The Wardens move us around, so no telling if we will be in the same dorm next time. No one knows how many girls are kept here. Because of the way we are separated, it can be weeks before you realize someone is gone. Even then you never know if it's because her Master came for her," Paula lowered her voice, "or if the Wardens have taken her away for another reason."

Cathy, tired after the long night, walked over to the back wall and sat down. She looked over at 'Twenty-Three', sitting close by. "Hi, it must be difficult if you can't even use your name." The girl looked back at Cathy, shrugged, and then lowered her head. Cathy thought she might have said something to offend the young woman.

Beth spoke up for the first time, "Cathy, you should know that Twenty-Three is not allowed to speak, except when directly addressed by a Warden or teacher. She was caught whispering to another girl during a training class. The teacher called a Warden, who ordered Twenty-Three not to speak without permission." Cathy looked at Twenty-Three, then back to Beth, "how long will she be punished?" Beth and Paula both smiled as Paula answered. "Until a Warden allows her to speak again. That's part of the process of discouraging improper behavior, you don't know how long. It could be a day, or a month."

A sound in the hallway outside their cell, and all four girls quickly knelt facing the door. A Warden appeared at the door, followed by two girls pushing a cart laden with bedding. At a nod from the Warden the two girls pushed four sleeping pads through the bars, and four light blankets. The Warden then moved down the hallway. He was followed by the two girls, accompanied by a light rattle from the leg chains between their ankles as they pushed the bedding cart behind him.

Cathy stood after the other girls rose, and followed them over to the bedding. Each one took a pad and blanket, picked out a spot on the cell floor, and made up a modest bed with the pad and blanket. Once more Cathy looked over to Paula. "Wait until the lights dim, then you can lie down. While the lights are dim you don't have to kneel when a Warden comes by. You can sleep until you are wakened and the lights come back up. The Wardens will walk by several times at night, making rounds. When the lights go down, you are not allowed to talk or move about." Cathy nodded at Paula's explanation.

The girls waited by their beds for several minutes, until the lights finally dimmed. Cathy lay down, covering herself with the light blanket, little more than a thin sheet. She felt the events of the last day sweep over her; her rebellion, her subsequent capture, her Master putting her in here. She closed her eyes, drifting off to an exhausted sleep, feeling the fear of the unknown facing her, and the loneliness of her isolation, cut off from her Master's love and care.

Cathy was awakened by a hand shaking her shoulder. "Wake up sleepy, you don't want a Warden to catch you in bed," Paula warned her. Cathy opened her eyes, momentarily disoriented at the sight of the bare walls and the barred cell door. Then she remembered where she was, and quickly rose from her sparse bed. She saw the other three girls quietly folding their blankets and stacking the sleeping pads near the door. She bent to fold her own blanket as they had, and placed her bedding on top of the small pile. Cathy then looked over at Paula, a question on her face as to what would happen next.

"In a few moments the cart will come by to collect the bedding, and we usually get something to eat at the same time. After eating we are taken to the showers to clean up, then an inspection, and classes afterward. That's the usual, but it doesn't always happen that way," Paula explained. "Sometimes we don't eat, sometimes we have exercise periods, and sometimes....well, we have disciplinary training." Paula and the other girls grimaced at those words.

A now familiar sound from the corridor, and all four girls knelt. The bedding cart moved down the corridor, stopping at other cells until it finally reached their door. Two girls, under the watchful eye of a Warden, pulled the bedding through the bars and piled it on the cart. The Warden raised his hand, and the two girls immediately stopped what they were doing. The Warden took one of the blankets, examined the folds, and then shook it out, examining it. Satisfied there were no messages on the blanket, or anything hidden inside, he handed it back to one of the two cart attendants, who folded it carefully and placed it back on the cart. The Warden and the bedding cart moved off.

Cathy started to relax, but stopped as she saw that none of the others had moved. She held her position, as the others did. And wisely so, for in a moment another cart was at the door, this one with breakfast. After the food cart moved on, the girls rose and walked to the door, each one taking a covered plate. Cathy followed, picking up the last plate. As they sat eating, Cathy asked Paula and Beth about the routine during the day, classes, inspections, training sessions.

The food cart returned, picking up the empty plates. Behind the cart was a group of Wardens. Two of the Wardens stopped at their door. One stood in front of the door and ordered them, "stand up, line up in single file facing the door." All four girls stood and got in line to comply with his command. He unlocked the door, held it open just enough for one girl to pass through at a time. "First girl, step into the corridor, extend your wrists." First in line, Beth stepped through the open cell doorway and stopped, extending her arms out in front. The second Warden fastened handcuffs on her outstretched wrists

The handcuffs were connected to a long chain with several other pairs of cuffs. As the Wardens ordered each woman out, she was locked into the next set of cuffs on the chain. The last one out, Cathy was at the end of the chain. At the head of the chain, a Warden gripped Beth's arm and began to lead her down the hallway, the rest of the girls forced to follow as the slack in the group chain was taken up. Cathy watched the others in front of her, copying their movements, back straight, head down, quick short steps.

The Warden led them through several gates to the shower room. One at a time, each girl was released from the coffle chain and allowed to enter the shower room through an open door. As Cathy went through, the Warden shut and locked it behind her. She followed Paula into the showers.

The warm water and soft soap felt luxurious. Cathy stayed under the shower as long as she could, relaxing in the feel of the water against her skin. As the others finished and moved off she followed them into the next area where a girl was issuing towels from a small room. Cathy took one of the large, soft, fluffy towels and dried herself. Following the others, she next picked up a small hair dryer and, watching how the others did it, dried under her collar and belt. She closed her eyes a moment, enjoying the sensation of the warm air through the narrow slit of the shield in the front of her belt. But only for a moment, remembering Paula's warning about trying to defeat the belt's control. She moved over to a sink and mirror, brushed her teeth, and combed her hair.

Finishing up, she headed to the exit door, where the other girls had gathered together. Cathy felt ready to face her tasks for the morning, but suddenly realized she didn't know what time it was, or even which day. Thinking back, her Master had brought her into the school at dawn Saturday morning, she had spent some time with Paula in a cell, and then slept, but she had no idea of how long she had been asleep. It could be either late Saturday night, or some time Sunday morning. No windows, no clocks, an irregular schedule, none of them could know how long they had been here.

As before, a Warden came to the exit door, ordered then to line up single file, and again handcuffed them together in a line. As they moved down yet another unmarked corridor, Cathy began to feel lost, unsure of which direction they were moving. There were no identifying marks anywhere on branching corridors or doors. It was like a maze, no way to know if she had passed through the same corridor an hour ago. Even if she could escape from the Warden now escorting them, she would soon become lost, and the numerous locked gates would further limit where she could go. She smiled, her Master was right; she would not be leaving of her own choice. She wondered how the Wardens always knew exactly where to go, how they could tell direction.

Eventually they stopped in a hallway, behind another group of girls. The group in front was chained together by the wrists too, but this group was facing the wall, hands raised above their heads. As the supervising Warden in Cathy's group stopped them, he ordered them to assume the same position, hands above their heads, against the wall, feet back, legs spread, leaning against the wall. Another Warden was moving down the line, inspecting each girl, checking the security of her collar and belt.

As the inspector reached Cathy, she tensed. She felt his hands on her, first testing the belt fit, that it wouldn't slip over her wide hips, then making sure the shield was held tightly against her. He pulled on her collar, verifying it was securely fastened about her neck, then ran his hand along first the collar and then the chastity belt, feeling for any signs of tampering. He stepped back, his eyes conducting a visual inspection. She held her breath, not daring to move, yet stimulated at his touch, and gaze. After a moment, he moved on, inspecting the girl Beth, next to Cathy, in the same thorough way. Cathy remembered to breathe again, thankful she had passed inspection.

The inspection finally completed, a Warden at the front of the line unlocked a door and began passing the girls into the classroom. As Cathy reached the door, she was freed of the chain, then the Warden took her arm and guided her through the classroom door. Inside the classroom, Cathy looked around, seeing a larger room that her previous small cells. There were several small, flat cushions in rows on the floor. The girls in front of her were positioning themselves behind of the cushions, standing quietly. Cathy walked over to the next free one, standing as the other girls did, feet slightly apart, hands at side, back straight, head down, not talking or moving about. Several more girls came in behind Cathy, then she heard the door shut and the loud click as the lock engaged.