The Warden stopped in front of one unmarked door, opened it with a key, and brought her inside. It was a small room, carpeted, a table and one chair in a corner, a low bed with wide leather straps against the wall. Her guard placed her next to the bed, and then removed her handcuffs. "Get on the bed, on your back. Place your hands and feet next to the straps."

Seeing the smaller wrist straps at the head of the bed, she laid down, her hands toward the wrist restraints, and her legs as wide as possible, pulling the leg chain linking her ankles taut. She looked up at him as he strapped down her wrists above her head, spread widely apart. Satisfied her hands were secured, he moved to the foot of the bed, unlocked the cuffs on her ankles, and placed them in straps too, her legs now held wide apart. Finished, he looked down at her for a moment from the foot of the bed, then without a word he turned around and walked out the door, leaving her alone. The door closed and a moment later the lights went out.

Cathy lay spread out on the bed in the dark, tied down and helpless, unable to move, wearing nothing but that accursed belt and her master's collar. Wild thoughts raced through her mind. Would she be beaten? How long would they leave her here? What if no one remembered her? She pulled on her bonds, testing them, but it was immediately obvious she had no hope of freeing herself. She relaxed, waiting, knowing someone else would make the decision when she would be freed of her restraints. She remembered her lessons on trust, never panic, her master would not let her come to harm. She closed her eyes and awaited her fate, whatever it might be.

Time passed, and she drifted into a light sleep. She was only half awake when she noticed the lights were on. Opening her eyes fully, she realized someone was standing at the foot of the bed. Looking up, she saw her master towering over her, looking straight into her eyes. Shock and joy rushed through her, and an involuntary "Master..." escaped her lips before she remembered she had not been given permission to speak.

She looked up at him, tears of joy filling her eyes. Without thinking she tried to rise up, go to him, but the bed restraints held her down. He just stood there, his eyes moving up and down her body, not saying a word. Desperate to please him in any way she could, Cathy tried to pull her legs further apart, to arch her back to better show him her breasts. Her eyes pleaded with him, to allow her to speak, to let her beg for his touch.

He stood there a moment longer, enjoying her wordless pleading, and then walked around to her side. He knelt down next to her, and placed one hand on her knee. His touch felt like fire to her, she gasped for air as a shiver ran through her aroused body. Still he would not allow her to speak. He lifted up his other hand, a small key dangling from a golden chain necklace he held in a fist. She recognized the key, and a wide smile appeared on her face as she nodded in eager agreement.

Cathy's master chuckled at her eagerness. He inserted the key into the lock holding the belt around her waist. Cathy was very still, waiting, hoping her master would open it, but knowing the decision was not hers to make. She watched him, trying to look at him and the key at the same time, trying to see if he would open it. He paused, a low laugh as he saw her fear he would not unlock her, then he turned the key and unlocked the belt that had held her prisoner for so long. He pulled out the top of the shield from the lock and away from her body, setting it down between her widely spread legs. For the first time since she had come here she was uncovered, fully open to her beloved master.

He reached down, touching her intimately, feeling her wetness. Cathy gasped, then moaned, her eyes closed as the sensation washed over her. She tried to push against his hand, but he didn't allow it. Instead his hand began to roam over her, touching, stroking, exciting her. Cathy kept her eyes closed, drinking in the feel of her master's touch once again, feeling herself lose control of her own body. Distantly she felt her aroused body respond, breathing faster, nipples hard, skin hot and flushed. She heard low moaning sounds, knew she was making them, but unable to stop it. Then she sensed the presence of her master over her, around her, entering her. She pulled at the straps on her wrists and ankles, wanting to put her arms around him and pull him further into her.

She could not reach him, her master had chosen not to allow it, but she could push against him, trying to move in rhythm with him. And then the thinking stopped, she reached the point of release. Her love for her master, his love for her, her complete surrender to him, his power and dominance, all combined in an endless moment when she and her master merged, becoming as one, the parts completing the whole.

Slowly Cathy returned to her exhausted body. Feeling her master stroking her cheek, she opened her eyes, looking at him. "Quiet, no words," he told her in a low but commanding voice. She tried to reach out to him, but she was still held down. Noticing her struggle with the straps, her master leaned over and kissed her, then said "No, I'm not going to untie you. You are doing very well here, so I decided you deserved a visit as a reward. I am very pleased at your progress so far. I will not be taking you home today, but if you continue to work hard, learn your lessons, you won't have to stay here much longer."

With those words, he reached down and pulled the shield up over her, inserting the top back into the lock plate of the belt. He turned the key, and she was once again imprisoned by the cool metal strip between her legs. Cathy's eyes went wide as he closed and locked the belt around her, but she knew any protest would be futile. The choice belonged to him; she had given it to him willingly.

He stood up and once again looked down at Cathy. He hung her belt key around his neck, "It's safe here, I'm sure I won't lose it this way," he told her, smiling as he patted the key. "I know this is hard for you, Cathy. This is not a pleasant place, and the methods can be harsh at times, but I want you to go through the program here.

"I know you didn't agree to being sent here, to be imprisoned like this. I doubt you ever imagined anything like this would happen. But I think we have progressed beyond the issue of consent. We have been together long enough for you to learn I will never harm you. Every decision I have made about your life has been toward what I thought was best for you. Being here is no exception.

"I will come for you when you are finished, Cathy, but not until then. No one here will let you go, no matter how much you threaten or beg. You have no choice but to stay here and complete the program. I won't abandon you or forget about you. I miss you every day."

He bent down and kissed her one last time, then walked out the door, closing it behind him. She heard the Warden lock the door behind her Master, then the lights in the room went off again. Tired, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep, dreaming of her Master. Still strapped down to the bed, unable to move and at the mercy of anyone who came into the room nevertheless she felt safe, protected by her master, trusting him to watch out for her. Whatever her future held, she knew he would be there for her, she would feel his presence.

Though Cathy was bound tightly to the bed, still she was happy and content. As she fell asleep she thought of her master, now absent but always watching over her. She was disappointed she would have to remain here, more than a little annoyed her master had left that belt on her, but she trusted him, accepted his judgment that she had not finished her lessons.

He knew her too well; he was right about not needing her consent any more. She couldn't tell him no. He had paid for her kidnapping and confinement here, all serious crimes, but he rightly wasn't worried about it. Even if she somehow escaped in the next few minutes she wouldn't go to the police. That explained in part how this place could operate; no one who left would ever consider filing a complaint. Cathy sighed as she drifted off to sleep. Somehow masters always rigged the game with rules to let them win, she thought drowsily.

Some time later she was awakened by a Warden's hand shaking her shoulder. Sleepily she looked up at him, momentarily confused, forgetting where she was. She turned to sit up...and suddenly remembered where she was as the bed straps halted her movements. The Warden walked over to the foot of the bed, released her ankles, then walked back to the head and freed her wrists. Cathy carefully did not move, waiting to be told what she should do next. The Warden stepped back, waiting for a moment. When Cathy did not move, he nodded in approval and gestured for her to stand up. Cathy quickly got up, stretching her stiff muscles for a moment before standing in front of the guard, head lowered. He took out a pair of handcuffs, locked her wrists together in front of her, and then led her to the door, holding the chain between the cuffs in his hand.

He took her through the open door, and then closed it behind her. He stood by the door for a moment, still holding her wrists, until a line of girls came by in the hallway. Her Warden placed Cathy at the end of the line, wrists in cuffs on a common chain, then the group moved on at a command from the Warden at the head of the line.

In the showers and during classes afterward Cathy looked for Paula. There was so much to talk about; Cathy hoped she would be assigned to the same cell as Paula tonight, so they would have some time to talk. Cathy felt sure she would be going home soon, and she wanted to tell Paula all about it. But she didn't see Paula at all, and that evening she was put in with three others she had never met before. Cathy was disappointed, and did ask her cellmates if they had seen Paula, but none of them knew who she was.

The next day was back to normal, eat, shower, classes, but no sign of Paula. Cathy hadn't seen her all day, and neither had any of the other girls. Cathy was concerned, what had happened to her? Had Paula broken a rule? Was she being punished somewhere else, isolated from her friends? Cathy knew it was forbidden to ask a Warden or a teacher about Paula, it was even risky to ask the other girls. No one seemed to know what had happened.

Several days passed, always the same routine. Everyday Cathy looked for her friend, asked about her, and every day the same answer, no one had seen her. The days and evenings seemed to be so long and empty without her friend. Cathy had no one to talk to, no one to share her thoughts, no helpful advice about the day's lessons. And Cathy especially missed her master. As wonderful as his visit was, he had not yet returned, and her desire for him was as strong as ever. More than once her hand had again found its way between her legs, and more than once it had been stopped by that frustrating steel plate covering her.

Day after day the loss of her friend and her own needs built up within her. The constant confinement, the lack of privacy, the Wardens always watching her, her missing master, all combined to make Cathy edgy, sullen and irritable. She wasn't speaking to the other girls, and she obeyed orders reluctantly and with little enthusiasm. Matters came to a head during an afternoon class.

Cathy had been depressed all day. Her one friend was gone, her master had abandoned her, and she felt cut off, lost, no hope of ever escaping the misery of this place. She had forced herself to go through the motions yet one more day, and now she was in an afternoon class, listening to the teacher, Sarah again, lecturing on how to kneel at a master's side. Cathy was only half listening to Sarah, more concerned with her own problems.

"Cathy, come to the front and demonstrate the position we just went over." The words from the teacher caught her by surprise. Cathy hesitantly stood up and walked to the front of the classroom. She looked at Sarah, unsure what to do next.

"Well? Show us how to kneel next to your master's chair," came the teacher's impatient order. Sarah took her pointer stick and tapped the floor in front of Cathy. Furiously trying to remember what the lesson had been about, Cathy knelt, legs wide, sitting on her heels, back straight, hands on her thighs.

"Very nice Cathy...if you were submitting yourself to your master's use. But this lesson was about how you behave when your master has guests. Perhaps if you paid more attention and learned the lesson you would do better and not embarrass your master in the process." Sarah continued to berate Cathy, touching her with the pointer to emphasize her mistake. "Knees together, remember you would be wearing a dress. And legs to one side, lean against his chair."

Cathy knelt there, humiliated in front of the class. Sarah continued to correct her; Cathy seemed unable to get it right. "Come on Cathy, concentrate on what you are doing. Your master will never come for you as long as you do so poorly." Sarah crouched down in front of Cathy, the pointer in Sarah's hand touching Cathy's leg.

That comment pushed Cathy over the edge. All her anger and frustration boiled over. Cathy reached out and slapped Sarah with her hand,. "Don't tell me what to do. You are not my master. He will come for me and take me away from here, because he loves me," Cathy shouted. The classroom fell silent, no one spoke or moved. Sarah put a hand to her face, where Cathy's slap had stung her. Instantly Cathy regretted what she had done, "Please Miss Sarah, forgive me, I didn't mean to strike you. Please, tell me what to do."

Sarah stood up, looking down at Cathy for a moment, then backed up. "I'm sorry Cathy, but there isn't anything I can do for you now. Stay where you are, don't move or speak, and when they come for you, don't even try to resist. Class, you are all to remain where you are, don't move, no talking, face front, until I tell you otherwise. Sarah then knelt down, some distance from Cathy, quietly waiting. Cathy looked around, at the class, unsure just what Sarah had meant, then froze when she saw the frightened look on Sarah's face.