Very special thanks as always to Scarlet aka 'fortheloveofgloves'. She gave me the idea for Edward's punishment, and I honestly doubt I could have come up with something half as good without her help.
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Price To Pay
At first glance, the guest room appeared very much as it had when I'd gotten dressed prior to our shopping trip, only now it appeared that the leather sheets had been changed and the bed made. Likely the duty of another of Miss Vera's slaves, done while we were out and about.
I wondered if that one- or any of them, had ever found themselves in such a mess as I was now.
As I slowly undressed once more, I felt a crushing despair which did not seem to be in line with my current circumstances. After all, I'd been offered a second chance, an opportunity to make up for my misdeeds, and yet somehow that did not seem to matter all that much, seeing as an unknown punishment awaited me down in the dungeon.
Then again, it was not the punishment itself that worried me so- I'd taken plenty of licks in Miss Vera's closet the previous day, but rather the fact that, if I overstepped even the slightest bit, made even one small mistake, then all of this was over. And that was something I could not fathom. Not anymore.
I had become so obsessed, so consumed, by Miss Vera, that the very idea of being sent away for good, denied permanently, and worst of all banned from ever seeing her again, was like being told I could no longer breathe air or drink water. She had become such an important part of my life that the idea of losing her was earth-shattering.
And yet, such a warning had been issued. Such a possibility hung in the air. And all I could do was hope that it never came to pass.
After several minutes I realized I was dawdling, trying in vain to delay the inevitable, and quickly removed the remainder of my clothes before placing them, my phone, keys and wallet on the small table beside the bed. Gazing down, I noted my ever-present erection and wondered if it would be the thing that got me into further trouble. I could feel the desperation, my cock straining for a release that only Miss Vera could provide, and worried that the slightest thing would lead it to betray me.
Taking a deep breath, I tried to get a sense of myself, if such a person even still existed. I would go down to that dungeon, I would take whatever punishment Miss Vera had in store for me, and I would do so without question. I had to.
At long last, I felt I was ready, or as ready as one could ever be in such a situation, and rather than keep my Goddess waiting any longer, I dropped to the ground and began the now familiar crawl on my hands and knees across the marble floors of the second-floor hallway towards the stairwell, then down to the main floor.
However, this time, the dining room was not my destination, but rather the door a little ways past it. The one I had only had the luxury of stepping through briefly upon my arrival.
The basement.
Miss Vera's dungeon.
Opening the door, I gazed down into the darkness, a dim light illuminating the way yet keeping everything else in shadow, and carefully, I made my way down the steps. A mix of sweat and leather filled the air, likely from countless other punishments which had been doled out down here. Mine was but the latest in a long line of them, and I wondered just what it could possibly be.
As I descended into the darkness, I could see racks and cages and walls covered in countless disciplinary implements- canes, whips, crops, paddles, as well as a number of leather hoods and bodysuits. Chains and leashes and collars and cuffs, everything a dominant Goddess like Miss Vera required to keep naughty slaves like me in line or to punish us for our transgressions.
Upon reaching the bottom, I quickly noted I was alone. Miss Vera had either not come down here after we'd returned, or she had done whatever she needed to do and vacated the basement in the time it had taken me to get myself undressed. Yet I remained on all fours and waited, just in case she was merely standing out of sight and observing me, to see if I did anything unbecoming which she could use as a reason to send me away.
Still, as I knelt there, I did look around, curious to see if any specific items or implements were set out for future use, yet I saw nothing. Everything appeared to be in its proper place, which meant that whatever Miss Vera was going to do to me, I would have to wait and see.
No clues for naughty slaves like me.
After several minutes of sweating the inevitable, the basement door shut, and the sound of bootheels on the steps echoed out in the dungeon, and I knew Miss Vera had arrived.
Again, I dared not look up at her, simply waiting for such a luxury to be offered. But I continued to wonder what was coming. Another caning? A thorough whipping? The possibilities, especially in a fully stocked dungeon such as this one, seemed practically endless.
Soon enough, the footsteps stopped right beside me, and in the dim light of the dungeon I could see a pair of black, thigh-high leather boots, the right toe of which tapped on the floor as if to say "Look up."
So I did.
Immediately, I understood why Miss Vera had not remained down here after we'd arrived back. She'd gone to get changed, and then some.
Her golden brown was tied up in a high bun, and her casual attire from the shopping trip had been exchanged for something more befitting the current situation. A tight black strapped leather dress clung to her, the zipper just barely able to hold back her bosom and the bottom of which ended only inches from her boots. A pair of short black leather driving gloves covered her hands, and as she gazed down at me, I felt all of two feet tall.
Miss Vera towered over me, quite literally, the two-inch heels of her boots making sure of that, and reminding me somewhat of my earlier dream. Once she knew she had my attention, she stepped away and began making her way into the den of domination we found ourselves in.
I followed, crawling behind her like the loyal pet I truly wished to be, though my eyes continued to dart around and take in all the things she could be planning to use on me. Miss Vera did not seem to be paying attention to any specific ones, and that made me worry all the more. Had she already taken out whatever she intended to punish me with, and kept it out of sight to prolong my anticipation? Or was there something I couldn't see from my spot by the door that only now would come into play?
For a few moments, my unspoken questions remained unanswered, until finally, Miss Vera stopped over by the wall of hoods and leather attire, and pulled off a black leather mask which appeared to have no eye holes. Then she turned back and beckoned me closer with a gloved finger. "Come, Edward."