Against Her Will (Dragon's Lair) (7 page)

Becky opened her front door, startled to find a gentleman in a smart three-piece suit
that seemed far too formal for a Saturday afternoon. He must be a salesman or a funeral director, but no one had died recently. “We don’t need any Fuller brushes,” she began, closing the door in his face.

The doorbell rang again. “I’m not selling anything, ma’am,” the man called through the closed door. “I heard you were trying to find your friend, and I came to help.”

Becky gasped. How could he know? She had told no one, not even her co-workers. “What friend?” she asked, testing him.

“Sarah
Mathison,” came the answer. The man smiled at her as she slowly re-opened the door. “She worked with you for the past six months, and you went to her home trying to find information about her.”

Becky kept the door open but blocked the doorway with her body. He could be anyone, perhaps even someone dangerous. Was he a spy assigned to her?

“I came to let you know she is just fine, ma’am,” the man said. He gave Becky an odd salute with his fingers resting against his brow. “I wouldn’t want you to worry.”

Curiosity got the better of Becky’s caution, and
she opened the door wider. “Why shouldn’t I worry? What happened to her?”

“Do you want to find out?”

All at once, Becky realized that the man held out a small, square black card. She didn’t even have to look to know it contained the dragon insignia.

*              *              *

“Nurse Julia, a word.”

Julia nodded at Richard as she pushed an unwilling Sarah toward the waiting room. “Now, sir?”

If Richard was surprised at her use of “sir,” he didn’t show it. While she was correct in every protocol and saved her banter for private conversations, she had not called him “sir” since she had been a recruit. It was a point of pride that she was now a nurse and not a charge. However, even pride had to give way in the face of necessity, and it was time for Sarah to learn how her new world worked. Before graduating, Sarah would kneel to obey anyone who bore the Dragon insignia.

“Once Dr. Schroeder’s nurse takes her back,” Richard reassured her.

Julia stifled a sigh. An order from Richard was an order, but how mean of him to make her miss Sarah’s first medical exam. It seemed all the more unkind when she considered that Richard could watch the videos whenever he wanted. As a nurse, Julia was only permitted to view footage if she filed paperwork with an official reason for her request.

Then she cheered up. With any luck, Sarah would behave badly in the doctor’s office, especially with the new request Julia meant to submit to the nurse. While Dr. Schroeder would take care of any naughtiness on the spot, Julia adhered to the strictest of old-fashioned discipline principles. A spanking from anyone in the Lair, while a girl was in Julia’s care, would mean a second and equally harsh spanking from Julia herself. Especially egregious misbehavior could result in a third spanking before bedtime.
Perhaps Julia could whisper something in the girl’s ear that would put her in a frame of mind more likely to react badly.

“Yes, sir,” Julia responded, and she
dragged Sarah by the hand while she marched to the check-in desk. Sarah had already been checked in through the computer system, and her files were already updated. It was a time-honored tradition, however, to submit young charges to the full treatment. The check-in process did much to prepare naughty girls to obey those in authority. Sarah Mathison would graduate as the most perfectly trained submissive in the history of Dragon’s Lair, or Julia would know the reason why.

Sarah didn’t dare to open her mouth, but she dragged her feet and kept her free arm across her breasts. She couldn’t look anyone in the eye, and the waiting room was crammed with patients. The pinch-mouthed check-in nurse glared at Sarah. “Why are you wearing a diaper? Why aren’t you wearing clothes?”

Sarah mewled and tried to hide behind Julia, but her nurse wasn’t having it. “Answer when you’re spoken to, miss.”

Sarah’s red cheeks grew even redder, and she whispered to the ground. “My clothes are in the wash.”

Julia caught Richard staring at the girl, his hand surreptitiously adjusting his pants. He must have seen a few strokes of the strap peeked from under the cloth diaper. “Answer properly right now, or you’ll regret it. Tell Nurse Simpson why you were so naughty this morning that you don’t get to wear your clothes.” In a voice low enough for only Sarah to hear, she gave the girl a hint. “This is your first day, so I’ll tell you what to say. Next time, though, you better answer questions completely the first time. Every adult in the Lair has the authority to punish you, and you’ll get a second dose once we get home. Now tell this nice nurse that you disobeyed your nurse and couldn’t control your bladder.”

Sarah’s teeth chattered as she whispered, “
I…I…” She broke off with a pleading look toward Julia, but the grim silence convinced her to continue. “I…” She wanted to die on the spot, but she had a feeling she wouldn’t be that lucky. If she didn’t do what Julia ordered, she would be fortunate to die a quick and painless death. She would play their stupid game, but only to save her skin. Literally. What had Julia told her to say? “I dis—disobeyed my nurse.” The room had gone silent, everyone hanging onto her words. Some clucked in disapproval at her admission. A look from Julia made her go on. Why couldn’t lightning strike her down? Anything would be better than this. “I couldn’t control…I…I wet…” She would take whatever punishment Julia gave her. She couldn’t say it. Not now, not here, not ever.

Across the room, Richard watched in fascination. How could anyone wring obedience from a fresh-caught girl that quickly? While others might see a defiant girl who hadn’t learned her place yet, Richard was full of admiration for Julia’s methods. Any other nurse would have
coddled Sarah on her first night. They had a soft spot for the new ones, and they would have tried to get her on their good side. Then, the first moment trouble hit, they’d have to beat the girls until the spankings no longer had any effect. Julia had a rare gift to exercise both cruelty and compassion, and she never wavered from her goal. No other nurse would have dreamed of trying a diaper on the first day, let alone having the girl wearing it publicly. Forcing Sarah to confess to her diaper was pure genius. Nurse Athena sniffed to someone else about “bad behavior,” but neither Julia nor Richard worried. Both knew that allowing this first bad behavior was crucial for the months of long, grueling training ahead. Every time Sarah tried to rebel, Julia would remind her of this first public humiliation.

And tender girls’ souls, unlike their delightful bottoms made especially for spanking, never grew callused or leathery. Julia was honing this shame button to press whenever she needed to bring the girl to heel.

Unaware of Richard’s admiration, Julia put a hand in her pocket. She drew out a small black notebook and opened it to the first page. “Nurse Simpson, may I please have a pen?” She had one of her own, but she enjoyed watching the effect of her request on the girl. Sarah struggled to speak, paralyzed with embarrassment. “Failure to answer questions from Nurse Simpson, even when given a second chance. Do you think that’s ordinary naughtiness for a first day, or does my charge need a demerit?”

The nurses in the room went slack-jawed at the mention of demerits. Julia’s demerits were legendary in the Lair. Even the most grizzled of disciplinarians would give a girl a second chance if he knew a Julia demerit was on the line. No one knew exactly what happened once Julia closed the doors—and it was the one time she ordered Richard to shut off the surveillance cameras—but
afterward her girls broke down in hysterical fits when threatened with a demerit in public.

Sarah, blissfully ignorant of the threat to her person, continued to stare at the floor. Nurse Simpson stared at the girl, then looked to Julia for a cue. Julia winked and lifted her head ever so slightly. Understanding, Nurse Simpson nodded and
gave her performance in the impromptu theater. Good cop, bad cop. She gasped. “A demerit? Honey child, answer quick before your Nurse gives you one.”

Sarah wanted to ask what a demerit was, but
the horrified stares from all of the nurses made her uneasy. She’d been poked and prodded into doing things all morning, and it wasn’t yet eight o’clock. No matter what she did, it was wrong and led to her bottom getting smacked or worse. If she tried to assert herself, she got punished. If she tried to do what she was told, she got punished. Her poor bottom hole had been assaulted in ways she never thought possible, and the wretched piece of metal still stayed inside of her.

Sarah had gone through her share of normal teenage rebellion, but other than that she had never balked at rules. She liked to make people happy, liked to get along with others, and had grown up never wanting for anything. She had nothing in her psyche to prepare herself for this world, and everything had been turned upside down.
None of the rules made sense, and no one explained anything to her without treating her like a child. “I don’t want to—“ she began, but Nurse Simpson wagged her finger in the classic “naughty girl” scolding.

“
Tell me why you were so naughty that your Nurse had to put you in a diaper on your first day.” Sarah hesitated, and the Nurse Simpson squeezed her hand. “Go on, lovey. I don’t want to see such a nice little girl get a demerit on her very first day.”

It was the touch of kindness
that did Sarah in. She threw herself into Julia’s arms, wailing. “I can’t do it! Please don’t get mad at me. I can’t. I can’t, I can’t do it, I swear I can’t.”

The nurses exchanged smiles over the top of Sarah’s
head. Julia had meant to teach Sarah a lesson in obedience, but instead the girl sought her comfort. She looked to her for hugs and protection, and she established the primacy of Julia as her caregiver. Julia was impressed in spite of herself. Learning to answer questions could come later. For now, she would have to reinforce this wonderful, unexpected breakthrough. She looked at Richard and nodded toward the hallway leading to the exam rooms. “May I take her in, please?”

Richard nodded
in return. He would wait.

Sarah, crying badly, became nearly hysterical as Julia led her to the empty room. “Don’t spank me! Please, I’m sorry!”

Again, Julia was impressed. First-day recruits tried to run away, assault their nurses, break furniture, or escape from their restraints. Sarah, although she had made her one threat to call the police, had quickly focused on Julia as the center of her new world and wanted to please her. It spoke well of Sarah’s future that she could adjust this quickly. For now, though, Julia had to calm the girl down. In the right circumstances, gentleness could be a more effective teaching tool than harshness. Too much harshness too soon could lead to a psychological breakdown. Too much kindness would undermine the lessons she strove to teach. The key was balance and knowing when to use which tactic. Julia rattled off these mental calculations to distract herself from her rapidly beating heart. The girl trusted her. She needed her. All of Julia’s training had not prepared her for the sweetness of a lovely girl who looked to her for protection.

“
Shh, pet.” Julia sat on the couch in the exam room. Unlike ordinary medical exam rooms with stiff plastic chairs, the Dragon’s Lair provided soft couches the perfect size for administering spankings. Of course, the only time a girl was allowed to occupy the couch was while bent over her nurse’s lap for a spanking. This time, however, Julia plopped onto the couch and pulled the girl onto her lap. She stroked her, calming her with soft words.

Confused, Sarah rubbed her watery eyes. All of the fear
had left her exhausted, and she couldn’t think beyond feeling grateful for Julia’s tenderness. “I’m sorry,” she whimpered.

“
Shh,” Julia reassured her. “I know you want to be a better girl. You want to obey and do as you’re told, don’t you?”

Sarah nodded before she could think.
She couldn’t understand why, but Julia’s words made sense. Everything about this situation should have been repulsive to her, but Julia’s appeal to her better nature rang true. No matter how Sarah had arrived, no matter how much she had endured, there was something trustworthy, loving, and safe about her new Nurse. Sarah was ashamed to admit it to herself, but she wanted to be cuddled by this amazingly gorgeous woman who lavished her with attention. She wanted Julia to be proud of her. “I don’t know why, but I do. I don’t want to be here, though. Please, can’t you take me home?”

Julia took some time before answering. How much should she tell the girl about her future? T
hen again, it was hypothetical for now. There was no sense in getting the girl’s hopes up. “I know it’s embarrassing, and you don’t understand what’s going on. The punishments are harsh.”

That was an understatem
ent if Sarah had ever heard one. Still, she relaxed. Julia was telling her the truth, and she was speaking to her without that scary threatening tone. Sarah didn’t know what compelled her to seek Julia’s protection, but somehow it had worked. She would give anything to keep Julia talking to her this way, sweet and soft.

Julia thought very hard. If this were a mistake, she couldn’t take it back. Yet her instinct told her that Sarah could be trusted with the information she had never told any other of her charges. “I used to be in your place,” she admitted. She hoped she didn’t blush at the thought of her own pert bottom tucked across her Nurse’s lap on that very same couch, getting blistered with a hairbrush for answering the doctor rudely. “I got spanked just like you did.”