Claire's Dreadful Misadventures

CHAPTER THREE

The Incident in Russia

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Disclaimer

This story is dark and contains themes of physical punishment, pain, abuse, and humiliation. Don't read the story if you are not looking for that. Be prepared for lots of punishment, lots of thinking about and dialogue surrounding punishment, and relatively little actual sex in the traditional sense. All characters are 18 and over. I recommend starting from Chapter One. Please, relax and enjoy the show!

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Dr. Thorton had just instructed Claire to sit on the wooden chair. She remembered not to take any of the pressure off her bottom this time, and this of course was quite uncomfortable after the intense spanking she had just received.

"Claire, Beth and I discussed this before, and we feel that we would like you to eventually reimburse us for the vase. I know you've just been through a very hard punishment, and perhaps I might be satisfied with that, but Beth was very attached to that vase, and she wants you to have some idea of its value. I agree that having you pay back at least part of the cost of the vase might help you appreciate the consequences of your actions. I know that you are young and don't have much money of your own. So, I'll try to take that into account. I'm going to ask you to just pay for half of the vase's cost. Does that sound fair?"

Claire's earlier bouts of crying were clearly visible on her face. Her breathing was just a little faster than normal and she was squirming in her chair quite a bit. Occasionally, she put a hand down and then remembered that Dr. Thorton didn't want her to take any of the pressure off her bottom.

"Yes, that's more than fair, sir."

"Well, I hope that you still feel that way after you know how much the vase costs. I normally consider it impolite to discuss this kind of thing. But the truth is that the vase was a 15th century artifact that we purchased from a museum at the cost of $330,000."

Claire stared in horror, speechless.

"So, you would then just need to pay back $165,000." Dr. Thorton made a note of the figure on a piece of paper on his desk.

"Sir... I..."

"I know that sounds like a lot. But listen, I'm willing to help you with this. I'm going to give you a job at one of my companies. And you can work there to start paying off the debt and you'll be getting job experience at the same time. So, really there is a way that you can see this situation is a positive light. And also, I completely understand if it takes a while to pay this off. It is a pretty large sum for someone in your position. So, once you get settled in at your new job, we can talk about how much you might be able to pay off each month. And then, we will just stick to that. Does that sound like a plan?"

"Yes, sir. Thank you for helping me to get a job, sir, despite all the mistakes I've been making. I really appreciate that."

"Then, there's the matter of the obedience training program that you will need to complete."

"What does that... um... consist of sir?"

"There are multiple phases. It's a bit too complicated for me to explain at the moment. For now, just know that you'll start out working on being perfectly still."

"Sir, will I be punished during the training sessions? I mean... I know I will be punished if I break any of your rules, but will I be punished if I'm good?"

"Yes, well, there are some unfortunate aspects of the training program. That's why I tried several other things with you first. The truth of the matter is that to improve at receiving punishments, you will need to practice. Therefore, yes, sadly you will have to be punished at times even when you have done nothing wrong. Though, remember you are only in this situation because of all the mistakes you've made up to this point. Does that make sense?"

"Yes, sir."

"So, it's not so much that you are being punished for no reason. It's just that instead of a specific transgression leading to a specific consequence, sometimes, you'll be punished for your general conduct here so far. But actually Claire, we can talk more about the obedience program later. Our focus for the moment should be on finding you a job so that you can begin repaying your debt."

"Thank you, sir. That's very kind."

"Not a problem, Claire. We want you to succeed here and achieve great things. So, the first step on your road to becoming an employee at one the Thorton organizations is taking a placement test."

"Okay, sir."

"The placement test will evaluate your intellectual potential and what positions you might be well suited for. Are you ready to take this test now? I understand if you need some time considering recent events."

"Well, if it's okay with you, sir. It would be great to have some time to recover."

"Not a problem. Would tomorrow morning be okay then?"

"Yes, sir."

"Okay, please arrive at precisely 7:30AM."

The next morning Claire arrived on time, but a bit tired and nervous.

"Okay, well let's get you set up. Bring your chair over to that table in the corner... Here's section one. This is a timed test. You see this hourglass? When the top half is empty that means time is up and you need to turn this part in. Then, I'll give you section two."

Claire knew that this test would be a disaster before answering a single question. The chair was of course hard wood with no padding and her bottom was still very bruised and sore. After the terrible events of the past few days, there was just no way she could concentrate. And even though she had not been allowed to wear clothes for a while at this point, she still wasn't quite used to it. She felt nervous and distracted every time that Dr. Thorton looked in her direction to check on her. Claire also kept staring at the timer slowly counting down instead of focusing on the questions. She only finished about half of section one. In total, there were six sections. She ran out of time before answering all the questions in every single section.

After the test was complete, Dr. Thorton said, "Okay, I'm gonna send these off to be graded. I should have the results sometime tomorrow. Please, report to Ms. Thorton to get your chore assignments for the day."

The next day after breakfast, Nancy asked Claire to walk with her out to the gardens.

"By the way, no one can see you from outside the property. So, don't worry about being naked. The property line is like... a mile that way." She laughed and Claire laughed too.

"Are you doing okay? I know you had a rough start but... are things going alright this morning at least?"

"Yeah... The morning has been alright so far. Do you know when I'll be able to wear clothes again?"

"Well, that depends..."

"Depends on what?"

"On your behavior. On Dr. Thorton and whether he is happy with the progress you are making."

"Okay."

"Listen, Claire. I know this is a little awkward, but I need to ask about the money situation. Do you have any money that you can use to start paying off your debt?"

"Well, I mean... I don't even really have a bank account. I always used to talk about setting one up with my parents, but it just never really happened. I would borrow their credit cards for stuff mostly. So, all I have is $300 in cash that I brought with me."

"Well, that's not much but it's a start. Would you mind getting that for me right now?"

"All of it?"

"Yes, all of it, silly goose! But don't worry, the family will take care of you. If you need something, just ask Dr. Thorton or someone else in the family. "

Shortly after giving Nancy the money, Claire was called to the study. When she arrived, Dr. Thorton sounded grave.

"Have a seat, Claire. I got your test results back, and well... they're not good. In section one, you scored 10th percentile. Section two, 30th percentile. Section three, 5th percentile. Claire, these are very, very poor results."

"I'm so sorry, sir. My bottom was hurting on that chair and I... I... I guess you'll want to punish me for this."

"No excuses, Claire. But, in fact, I'm not going to punish you. This test was simply designed to measure your potential. It looks like this is just where you are at. We'll need to work with the skills you have. That said, your options for career opportunities will be pretty limited. I'm guessing we won't be able to get you anything above minimum wage. Perhaps, later on you could earn a little bit more, but it's important to manage expectations here.

Now the good news is that, believe it or not, I did find you a position in Russia. It's temporary. They just need someone for about a month, and you'll get their equivalent of minimum wage. It could be a good opportunity to meet people. You'll be working at a hotel and restaurant I own there. You'll leave this afternoon, and Ms. Thorton will accompany you for the flight, get you settled in, and then she'll be moving on to Paris for her annual vacation."

"I appreciate the opportunity, sir."

"You should. Try not to make too many mistakes. And by the way, if you do make a mistake, be sure to come forward and tell them about it. I've authorized your superiors in Russia to discipline you using the same methods that we use here. Essentially, anyone who has a higher rank in the company than you do has the right to punish you. So, keep that in mind. I don't want to hear about any disobedience while you are there. And that reminds me... we need to talk about the rank structure within the company at some point. It'll have to wait as I have other priorities to attend to. You are dismissed. And Claire?"

"Sir?"

"I'll see you when you get back. I hope it's a rewarding experience."

A few hours later, Claire, still naked, left for Russia in a limo and was amazed to find out that they would be taking a private jet.

"Dr. Thorton owns all this?" she asked.

"Well the company does, yes. We are quite fortunate." Ms. Thorton replied.

After the plane departed, Ms. Thorton started speaking a bit more authoritatively. She had definitely lost some of her original warmth and friendliness. Claire couldn't help but wonder if she was still angry about the vase.

"Well Claire, we need to get you ready. They want you working as soon as you arrive, and you need to be looking perfect. You are going to start out as a waitress. Let's get you cleaned up. Go ahead and take a shower first."

"The plane has a shower?"

"Yes dear. Quickly, now."

After the shower, Ms. Thorton handed Claire some clothes. Perhaps underwear Claire thought.

"Okay dear. This is your uniform for the job. Go ahead, try it on," she said excitedly.

Claire put on the panties first. They were light blue and decorated with a lacy pattern. It felt good to be wearing clothes again after so long. Just these panties felt like an upgrade to her dignity.

"What's this?" asked Claire, holding a small loop of silky, white fabric.

"Why, that's your shirt, dear. Put it around your chest. You'll see in a minute."

Claire put the loop around her breasts. It was a reasonably snug fit. There was only enough fabric to cover about an inch of skin though. When she placed the loop in a position that covered her nipple, the bottom and top of her breasts were still very much exposed.

"I don't understand. Where's the rest of the uniform?" asked Claire.

"I'm afraid that's all you get dear."

"I mean isn't this pretty revealing for working at a restaurant?"

"Well, Claire. I know maybe this isn't what you were hoping for. I know I've always encouraged my daughters to be modest and not to engage in sexual activities until they were ready for the commitment of marriage. But for you... Well, you're on a different path. You don't have a lot of options right now. With your scores, no one is paying for your brain power, Claire. But..." Ms. Thorton grimaced, and said, "They will pay for the view."

While Claire had been forced to be naked for several days, she had always associated that with being punished. Now, she was being truly sexualized, and she felt a new level of embarrassment all over again. Her face flushed red.

"So, it's a restaurant... but it's also a place where men go... to look at women?"

"Just think of it is as a sexy atmosphere, okay? Oh shoot, I almost forgot. Your marks. The bruises are still visible. They won't like that. Take the clothes off again, and I'll get you some makeup to hide it."

Claire took the clothes off, and they did their best to hide the bruises.

"Claire, one last thing. Sweetie, maybe you should shave." She grimaced again. "Sorry to be impolite, but... think about what people are going to see when you wear the uniform, okay? The bathroom is fully stocked. So, I'm gonna leave you to it."

After landing, another limo took them to the restaurant. Luckily, Claire didn't have to spend much time walking in the very cold weather in her meager uniform. Inside the restaurant, the atmosphere was warm and dimly lit. There was an empty stage at one end of the place, which had poles for pole dancing. She met several Russian men who were of course speaking Russian, which of course Claire could not understand. Claire mostly delivered drinks and sometimes food to certain tables, as directed by a lady in the back. She obviously wasn't able to take people's orders. Though the lady in the back didn't seem to understand this and got frustrated with her. The woman walked her over to a tall and somewhat wide man that seemed to be running the show.

After talking to the woman in Russian, he said, "Ehh.. You... eh... no speak Russian?"

"No, sir."

"Ehh.. you can dance?" He guests to a collection of poles.

Claire stared wide-eyed.

"N-n-no. No, sir."

"Eh, you dance. They like you!" He said jovially.

Soon it became apparent that while Claire might be very beautiful, she didn't know how to pole dance. Still, they let her try for a while. Some of the men shouted encouraging instructions but that didn't seem to help much.

Eventually, the jovial man came back and took her away from the pole by the hand. He led her to a back room where a second man was waiting. He was wearing gold chains, had a shaved head, and was just slightly plump. The two men conversed in Russian and gestured at Claire's body. The one with a shaved head seemed to ask a question, and the jovial man translated in a heavy accent:

"Ehhh, he wants to know um... as child... how do you say... does your father hit you on the ass?"

"Oh, was I spanked growing up?"

"Da, da. Ehh... yes."

"No, not growing up. But... I mean... I have been spanked..."

The man with the bald head said something else in Russian.

"He says eh... company says you can be spanked... if they want that, they can go to you... da?"

Claire thought about how to respond and recalled that Dr. Thorton said she could now be punished by anyone with a higher rank than her. Should she try to figure out if these men had the authority to punish her? Something told her that would be difficult and fruitless. Probably, they did. After all, who didn't have a higher rank than her, in all likelihood?

"Yes, you are allowed to spank me but... can I ask what I did wrong, sir?"

The bald man smiled.

"He says you can discuss that in his room." The jovial man chuckled.

Claire fell into an anxious confusion, and passively followed the man down another hallway and through a door. The room they were in now looked like one of the hotel rooms.

The bald man sat on the edge of the bed and gestured for Claire to come to him. He then pulled Claire over his lap and spanked her soundly with his hand.

With a very thick Russian accent, the man said, "Up."

"No clothes."

"Of course, sir."

Claire actually thought it was a little strange that he would choose to punish her with her clothing on, even if it was minimal. After all, didn't he want to make her disgrace clear? As Dr. Thorton would have done? She still wondered what she had done wrong, but thought it was probably either her failure to speak to the customers or her poor dancing.

The man led Claire on to the bed. Then, he did something Claire did not expect. He began to undress.

"What are you doing?"

Then, he pressed himself against her.

"Wait! No!"

Claire finally understood his true intentions, and in a moment of panic, she pushed the man off of her. The man resisted. Claire pushed harder and forced her knee into his stomach. The man awkwardly fell into the dresser hitting his head on the way down. On pure instinct, Claire threw her clothes back on and just ran. She ran in random directions until she found an exit. Then, she ran through the cold, until her feet hurt too much. Then, she found an alley and collapsed.

What have I done? She thought to herself in anguish. The pavement was lined with a beautiful and deadly layer of frost. Claire's only protection against the cruel elements of nature were her light blue panties and the simple one-inch loop of white fabric that was designed to cover her nipple, while accentuating the rest of her chest. She grew nervous every time a stranger looked at her.

In a daze, Claire tried fruitlessly and frantically to come up with a plan for survival. She began to shiver more and more violently. In a wave of hopelessness, she wondered if there was no place for her to belong, no job that she could do for Dr. Thorton, no task that she wouldn't mess up. Then...

She was saved.

A group of a dozen men in suits surrounded her and then drug her into a warm limousine. Claire noticed that every single one was armed, strong-looking, and utterly humorless. The only thing they said during the entire trip was, "You go back to America, now."

Dr. Thorton didn't have time to talk to Claire until a couple days later. The interim was mostly spent doing chores and psychologically tormenting herself. When they finally did talk about what happened in Russia, it started in a way that surprised Claire.

"I'm terribly sorry Claire. I should have known that you weren't ready to go to Russia with only Ms. Thorton's assistance."

"Sir, this was 100% my fault. I just... I didn't know they would ask me to do that."

"That much is understandable. I was under the impression you would be working as a waitress. If there is a form of work that you feel uncomfortable doing, please do let me know. That said, as we've discussed, your test scores limit the opportunities that you have available. So I guess I'm asking for some... flexibility."

"Ok... I can be flexible. I was okay with the uniform, even the dancing, just not... going all the way."

"Sure, that must have been a difficult experience for you. And I understand if you need a break from working for a while. I'm thinking that you should focus on the obedience program for now. But eventually, I'd like to get you back into the business, and... well try to be flexible, like I said, and I'll work on the finding the best match for you based on your placement test.

Now, Claire. While I understand you were put in a difficult situation, I'm obviously very concerned about the choices you made. As a minor punishment, and I don't really think you'll have a problem with this, I would like to 'ground,' you, so to speak. By which I mean, I don't want you leaving the house anymore. You'll be safer here for now. I don't want to scare you but... The man you injured. He's an important person. You know? Someone with power. And umm... well, there's some concern that there might be people looking for you."

Claire looked scared.

"But don't worry about it. Our organization is very large, and we have security patrolling our property 24/7. Just stay inside and you'll be safe. I know this is a lot to take in."

"But sir?"

"Yes, Claire?"

"You are going to punish me for everything that happened in Russia, aren't you? I mean there's no way that getting grounded is the extent of it, right? And I was going to do the obedience program anyway. I just... the anticipation is hard to bear, sir. I know I'm in a lot of trouble. If you are okay with it, I'd like to know my fate."