Measure of a Man

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

A few months after the incident with JJ Jacobs and his untimely but deserved death, the strong relationship between Charlene O'Reilly, Tad McDragough, and Kitty Douglas was showing signs of severe strain.

Before JJ had died, he had horribly abused Kitty under the auspices of being her Master, and it had taken direct intervention from Tad and Charlene along with the rest of the Seattle BDSM community to rescue the younger girl and bring her mind back to reality from the abused fantasy she had been living in.

Tragedy had stuck during these events. Charlene had been three months pregnant with Tad's baby when JJ had attacked her and Kitty. The unborn child had not survived the attack, dying by JJ's violence before he was shot by police brought to the scene.

Charlene mourned the loss of the tiny life growing inside her for weeks before she began to finally get on with her life. Tad had never left her side. The roguish Scotsman had been her rock to anchor to, even as she wavered between deep depression and anguish over the loss. Kitty had also been with her, always a shoulder to cry on, or be ready to receive her love and give comfort as needed.

Their good friends, Trisha and Jake McBride, had also been there to support them. Together, the four had managed to bring Charlene back to a sense of balance after such a terrible tragedy.

Charlene blamed herself for the loss of the child. Even though rationally, she knew that the insanity of the giant who had punched her in the stomach so violently as to break ribs and cause the miscarriage was to blame. It was her baby, she had been carrying for both her and Tad, and she had lost it.

Tad had not spoken openly of the event, he had cried in Jakes' arms at the station as the Police Captain had held him after the shooting. After that one breakdown, Tad had suppressed the entire incident, focusing on helping Charlene and supporting Kitty. Letting his own thoughts and emotions bury themselves in other avenues.

Tensions built in the once happy home, and Kitty knew something was up between her Mistress and Master, but was unable to stop what happened.

"I have to go." Charlene said while she packed a bag.

"Where are ye planning tae go, luv?" Tad asked her, his accent thick with the stress he was feeling.

"I don't know, Tad. Just away. I have to get away from here. I have to find myself again, so that I can come back to you. Back to me, and back for Kitty." She said, tears dampening her cheeks as she finished packing an overnight bag with her essentials.

"You will be returning then?" Tad asked quietly.

Charlene stopped and looked at him, then came to him and kissed him while her arms wrapped around him in a passionate hug that he had not felt in months.

"I love you so very much, my Scot. I am not leaving you. I must find myself so that I can heal. I need to do this on my own. I have to find a way past what has happened so that I can be the woman you love, and the person inside that I can love. I will be back. I just have to go, for now."

Tad turned so that she could not see his face, but Charlene knew he was hurting terribly. He went to the dresser and pulled out a small envelope which he handed to her.

"What is this?" She asked as she opened it, seeing a wrapped bundle of banknotes and a plastic card.

"Cash and a credit card. If ye need to go, Red. Then go, with all me love and me best wishes. I love you as much as I've loved any lass in me life, and I'll be here when ye do return. I'll always be here for ye."

Charlene's heart broke as she heard the words, she knew that Tad cared deeply for her and she gave back as good as she got with him. This was something she just had to do. She slipped the envelope into the pocket in the bag, zipped it up, then went to have a word with her submissive.

Tad and Kitty stood by the front door as the taxi drove away with Charlene sitting in the back seat. Neither of them waved, and as the taxi pulled out of sight, they turned and Kitty walked back into the house while Tad watched until he imagined the taxi had pulled onto the main road, then closed the door and leaned on it, just breathing.

He walked into the living room to find Kitty sitting on the couch, hugging a pillow that Charlene had often slept on when she had napped in the afternoons. As he came up to her, Kitty began to cry, then throwing the pillow aside, she leapt up and into Tad's arms, sobbing brokenly.

Tad held her, his own loss filling the void as he comforted the much younger girl, only 19, having gone through the gates of hell and back in such a short time. Charlene had been as a mother to her after a car accident a decade ago claimed her own parents. Now that mother was gone as well.

Tad eventually got Kitty calmed down enough that she was able to stand on her own, but he then scooped her up and laid her on the couch, bringing her a cool cloth for her face and a glass of Iced Tea, made his own special way. He was going to take care of this girl for as long as it took until Charlene returned.

Charlene's last words to them had been "Take care of each other. I will be back, I just have to do this." And then she was gone. Kitty was aimless, feeling more lost than before. She fingered the collar that she had been given by Tad and Charlene so long ago now, a beautiful piece of choker jewellery that symbolized the joint love between the three of them.

She was in a daze as Tad busied himself in the kitchen, obediently she got up and sat with him as they ate a meal that neither of them tasted much, then they both went and sat in the hot tub and watched the sun go down. Not touching, but not far apart either.

Kitty began to yawn and Tad got up, then lifted her out of the softly bubbling water, and wrapping a large towel around her naked body, took her into the bed with him. They laid there most of the night, Kitty holding onto him tightly, but neither of them sleeping much, lost in their own thoughts.

The bond was broken, but it began to heal slowly. Tad continued to do his routine every day, Kitty drifted, not feeling up to doing much of anything, she spent most of her days sitting on the wide wooden deck, watching the sun rise, and then watching it set.

Kitty sat naked, letting the suns' rays strike her body as she sat cross-legged on the deck. This part of the deck was wrapped in smokey glass so nobody outside could see her exposure, but Kitty didn't care right now. She sat, feeling the kiss of warmth on her skin, lost in her own thoughts and feelings.

She refused to take care of herself, Tad tended to make a meal for them both, and would have to bodily walk her to the table and make her eat, and he also showered with and bathed her, she was just a living statue, very numb and limp. She would follow his lead, but when he did not lead her, she would peel off whatever clothing she had on, and go and sit on the sundeck again.

She was a submissive, she had been slave to so many men before Charlene had taken action and had collared her to keep her safe. JJ had beaten her so badly and had so deeply convinced her that he was her sun and her moon that Kitty had been willing to take daily abuse from him in return for scant signs of affection. It had taken Tad and Charlene making her submit to them with love and affection to break through that wall and they had finally gotten her to think rationally again.

Tad cared, deeply, about both her and Charlene. She knew that he loved her Mistress with all his heart, and that he loved her too, but not in the same way. She knew he cared, because he was always watching her, she had a glass of Iced Tea sitting beside her all day long, silently being refilled and refreshed multiple times as he went about his own business, but never far from her.

Part of her wanted to run, but Charlene had said to take care of each other. Kitty couldn't even take care of herself right now, let alone their Master. She sighed, and felt the weight crushing down on her slim shoulders as she tried to reconcile the responsibilities and expectations of what Take Care actually meant.

Did Charlene want her to fuck him? She had helped many times when they had been intimate, and Kitty had felt Master's hard cock in her own pussy quite a bit, but never without Mistress being there. Did she want them just to be close, and be there for each other, to be a happy family and wait while she went and did whatever had to be done to heal from the loss she had suffered. Kitty had no idea, and it made her head hurt.

"I HATE THIS!" Kitty screamed, picking up the glass and throwing it so it smashed against the glass pane and shattered into a mess of wet glitter at the base of the pane.

She turned and stormed up to Tad, raising her fists, she tried to attack him, but was swiftly held fast while she raged at him.

"You needed to stop her!"

"She is free, Kitty. Just as you are."

"You Are Master, you are in control. Control this!"

"Aye lass, I do control. But I don't stop you from being free."

"I Am Your Slave. I submitted to you. Damn you, Own me!" Kitty snarled, then breaking a wrist free, slapped Tad as hard as she could, then fled to the couch where she curled up into a sobbing ball.

Tad stood for a moment, thinking about what had just occurred, and quickly processing through the events. Charlene had said to take care of Kitty. Kitty was a submissive and had thrived under Charlene's tight control. Even as Charlene was not a real Domme, she had become one to keep Kitty safe, and had grown into the role. Charlene was not here, it was just him and Kitty, and she still needed that control. Tad really had no choice but to apply it with her.

He had always been so gentle with the younger girl, never wanting her to have a flashback or recall the abuse she had suffered under JJ's thumb. Even when he had disciplined her, it had been with Charlene there so that Kitty could rationally think that this was as Mistress wanted.

Tad walked up to the couch, and sitting down, pulled a struggling Kitty face down across his lap and began to soundly spank her. No words were spoken, nothing needed to be said. Kitty lay across his lap, feeling her bottom beginning to throb and then burn from the attention as Tad slapped her seat all over with his firm hand. They did not stop for a long time, and Kitty finally slid off his lap to kneel in front of him, her bottom a solid mass of red and on fire, her face streaming tears as she cried out her own hurt and loss, then she looked up at Master and saw much the same thing. He was also crying.

She swiftly stood and sat on his lap, arms around him as she comforted her Master. The man who had saved her so long ago and who had given her and Mistress so much love. He was hurting, and Kitty could not stop that, but she could, in her own way, take care of him, as Mistress had told her.

How long they sat there, Kitty kneeling over his lap and holding him, Tad holding her as they both cried quietly, neither of them knew. When did it progress from comfort to a form of passion, neither of them was quite sure either. The comfort gave way to caress, and the caress became more intimate, then Kitty kissed him, and Tad returned the kiss. Kitty rose, and taking him by the hand, led Tad to the bedroom, her bright red bottom a beacon to him as the young submissive guided her Master in one of the few ways she really understood, how to take care of each other.

They did not fuck, they did not make love, they just held each other. Tad would not allow himself to betray Charlene by using Kitty that way, even as the girl was more than willing, Tad was not, his sense of honour was far too strong to take advantage of a willing Kitty without Charlene being there.

He allowed her to pleasure him orally, and he returned that same pleasure to her, but there was no penetration of his cock into her pussy. That did not happen. Kitty happily swallowed his seed that first night, and then contented, she slept curled up with her Master, and Tad slept also, not quite as content as Kitty, but somewhat more at ease because she was settled.

The days slowly turned into weeks. Patterns developed. New patterns that worked for the two lost souls. Without Charlene as the third leg of their pyramid, things were strained, but they worked themselves out. Most of the time Kitty would silently fume, then blow up without warning, provoking Tad into giving her seat a solid roasting. Most nights they would sleep together, Kitty often giving him pleasure as a good submissive is wont to do, sometimes receiving intense pleasure back from his lips and tongue, other times, happy just to take care of him in the way she knew best.

Tad kept a close eye on Charlene's progress as the credit card was used. He ensured the funds on the card were always topped up, so she never had to worry, and tracked the usage across the country. She travelled widely, mostly buying tickets on the Greyhound and going to major cities, then tickets were bought at parks and exhibits. She spent nights in motels and some hostels as well, so she was probably backpacking her way around, Tad reasoned.

Tad began to imbibe in alcohol to deaden his frayed nerves. Not a lot to begin with, a casual drink here and there. The need grew though, and within a week he was downing most of a bottle of Whiskey a day, losing the ability to sexually perform, which left Kitty feeling even more lost as she could no longer give him pleasure, and with alcohol surging through him, Tad began to edge towards danger as he began to have flare-ups and rages she had no idea how to even begin to control.

One day, Tad awoke to an odd feeling. The house was too quiet. Kitty was gone. He walked around, her clothes were still there, but she had taken a few things, and she was not in the house. Tad sat down, watching the coffee brew, and thoughts of Siobhan came to him, mostly unbidden.

Siobhan Stuart. The woman who Tad had fallen for more than fifteen years past, when he was on the crest of the art wave in Scotland. As an artist on the rising wave of populist impressionism that London wanted so badly, his work was in the highest demand. His bank accounts were rapidly filling up as his works were sold and resold for staggering amounts of money.

Lovely Siobhan, a crest of russet curly hair topping a pale face that had expressive blue eyes that looked like twin icicles and could see right through his soul. A thin body with twin conical breasts that were topped by pale pink nipples and the slightest differing shade of aureola. Her pussy crowned by a thick moss of russet hair that had felt like silk to Tad as they had made love so many times.

She was an Art Dealer, one of many who made the journey from London to Glasgow to visit with the talented but reclusive McDragough. She alone had caught his eye, and she had caught his lust, then engorged it to a bright flame of desire that she welcomed with open legs and lusty couplings.

They had been together for some months before he had proposed to her. Siobhan had accepted and within a few short weeks they had married. Little did Tad know what was to come. Within the span of six months, Siobhan was pregnant, then she had an affair, and then she vanished from his life, without a word, and without the baby that he had been looking forward to.

Tad had learned she had gotten an abortion in the second trimester, after she had left him. She had killed their unborn child, and had returned to her life in London without a backward glance. Divorce papers came swiftly, she wanted nothing, it was just over.

Broken, distraught, Tad had descended into Whiskey and rages. Smashing his studio, then smashing his car as he drove drunk on slippery roads. He walked away from the accident with just a few cuts and bruises, and wandered aimlessly until he came across the house of one of his friends from before.

Terry took one look at the broken man at his door and took Tad into his house to rebuild him. With the help of his wife, Terry brought Tad back to earth, then helped him to regain balance by reminding him of the Tai Chi experiences they had both learned years before in school.

Tad had recovered his senses, and his balance, and then began to regain his life, but Scotland no longer had good memories for him. He departed from Terry and his wife, and within a week had left the country, never to return.

Terry never got the name, but knew that the mortgage on his house that had been paid in full was a gift from Tad, and always did his best to keep tabs on the younger man as he did his own travelling, and was happy to see him stop in Seattle, and then stop moving. Maybe Tad would find peace or solace there.

Tad had not thought about Siobhan, Terry, or anybody from the Old Country for years now. The feelings were still there though, the loss, the sadness. He was being left alone to deal with and handle a tragedy that did not need to happen.

Kitty drove carefully, even with eyes full of tears, she was alert and mindful of the road conditions. She would pull off and cry a bit, then put the Sportage back into gear and drive a little more before having to stop again. She knew where she was going, she just hoped to God they were home.

She pulled up in front of the small house that had been her home for a few months before, and saw one car was parked, so somebody was home. She got out of her Kia and walked up to the door, tentatively knocked, but heard no response. She knocked louder, and heard something. Within a few moments, the door opened, and Kitty collapsed into Trisha's surprised arms as the Haitan woman who was Charlene's best friend suddenly had arms full of an emotionally broken submissive.

Trisha half-carried Kitty inside and closing the door, tried to get her to sit, only to have Kitty collapse on the floor, crying and sobbing brokenly. Trisha could not get anything out of her, except that Kitty looked to be suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress. She pulled Kitty into the bathroom and ran a bath with as hot of water as she could stand, knowing that the external warmth would help the girl, and as Kitty half-stood, she felt Trisha stripping her clothes off, then was put into a bath of very hot water that although it stung, felt so good.

She sat there, then was pushed down by gentle hands until only her head and neck were above the water, supported by a rolled towel behind her, and she sat, Trisha gently washing her face with a cloth, just letting the heat soak into her as she continued to shed tears and cry. At some point, Kitty was aware that Jake had come home, and she could see through her peripheral vision, the very tall black man who she was partially hooked on but who's heart was solidly owned by Trisha was close, but not intruding on this moment that she needed with Trisha.

Kitty finally came back to herself and looked at Trisha who was sitting on the edge of the bathtub watching her, hands gently caressing her face and stroking her hair.

"Charlene is gone." She finally croaked.

"Shhh, I know, Kitty." Trisha replied.

"She told you?" Kitty asked.

"I'm her best friend. We talk about everything. I know she's gone. She is also going to return. You're not handling this well, are you, love?" Trisha said, gently stroking Kitty's hair.

"No. I need her. I miss her. I can't even help Master, he's as lost as I am and he's getting scary." Kitty said, then began to cry again.

"Did he hurt you?" Trisha asked, looking up at Jake who was standing in the doorway, listening.

"No, no. Nothing Like that. I don't think he could hurt me even if he tried. He's far too gentle. But, he's lost. He's begun to drink a lot of whisky, and I don't know how to help him because I can't even help me." Kitty explained through a few more sobs.