Can There Be Peace Ch. 06

"Tell me which you would have me pick and it will be so," the woman said dropping her eyes.

Cat sighed, "Little sister, I would have you drink what you want. I am taking a bottle of Jack for me to sip on. If you want to join me that is fine, if not all you need do is say and if we have it you can have it."

"Water and a sip or two from your bottle." Cindy replied. "Why are you being so nice to me Cat?"

Cat grabbled a bottled water from the fridge and handed it to the woman before grabbing one of the two bottles of Jack Danial's. As she headed out the back door she grabbed one of the head lights they wore before and handed it to the woman. "I'll talk as we go," she said taking the girl's hand and leading her to the path up to the grove.

"When you were young and you did something wrong, did your parents say why it was wrong before punishment? Or did they just toss you into a room without a reason."

"They sat me down and explained my mistake to me. Then I would get a paddling and later time outs." Cindy said.

"Well it serves no purpose for me to punish or rage at you. The best I can do is help guide you so you don't make the same mistakes again." Cat said. She was surprised to see a candle burning up ahead and found it to be a pine scented candle in a jar. She laughed and said, "Thank you mother for this gift." Sitting down she leaned against one of the great evergreen trees and patted the ground next to her.

As the woman sat, Cat said, "This is Mistress's grove. I have been all over the world and nothing brings me peace like this place does. You should see it in the daylight little sister, it is beautiful."

Cindy turned off her head lamp and looked around the darkness. With the single candle flickering it sent shadows dancing around. However, she didn't feel threatened here or scared of the dark. "Yes, there is something... a calmness that flows through me and I know I am safe here." She took a sip of her water and then asked, "Do you know why?"

"The goddess has a temple here. Or I should say she picked this place, Mistress's place for her temple. To tell the truth I don't know who came here first." Cat answered taking a sip of from the bottle before handing it to the woman.

She looked at the bottle and after a moment took a little sip. While she expected it to burn going down, it gave her a pleasant buzz. "You do know your goddess is a succubus. Right?"

"No, she is Lilith, the first woman that the great mother made as a companion for the first man. However, she was not submissive and had her own mind So the great mother recalled her and made Eve a submissive companion for Adam." Cat said. She could have gone into more detail but said, "Red can discuss her with you in greater detail than I can. I want to talk to you about your life choices and see if together, we can get you out of it."

She took another drink and handed the bottle back. "Oh Cat, what do I do? Everyone hates me now. I fell in love and then the he refused to leave his wife for me. I was nasty to everyone to ruin him but it only made me the bad guy and not the man who strung me along for nearly a year."

Cat took a sip and said, "I learned that if you plan on revenge, dig two graves." She paused for a moment before adding, "It took me a long while to learn to let it go. In fact, it was Mistress who helped me get past it and my own self-hate." She took another sip and handed the bottle back before continuing, "As for having people like you or not, as long as I have my family, the world can hate me all they want. It's a lot like when Mistress, Baby Girl and I were in the army."

"I was in the army and when we deployed my squad and I were tighter than I had ever been to anyone before or since. Did you three serve together too?"

"No, Karen and Baby Girl did as Staff Sergeant and Corporal in the same ranger team" She took a breath and added softly, "I was a Major in charge of another firebase and loved my boys as if they were my own." She took a long pull and handed the bottle back, "When I got out I was lost until Mistress rescued me. She gave me a family and then sisters to love." She suddenly stood and said, "Turn your light on for a moment."

She turned her light on and looked up at Cat, "Yes family... that's what we were. God I wish I had never gotten out now."

"Little sister, if you want you can have a family once more." Cat said. She rotated, "I have five marks on my body that mean more to me than the Congressional Medal of Honor did when I received it."

Cindy jumped to her feet and saluted and held it when Cat said she had been awarded the medal.

"At ease," Cat replied returning the salute. She turned and pointed to a healed brand on her thigh. "This is my mark of slavery. To all who know, they will know I am owned and serve another with all my mind, body, and soul." She paused, "You will have one also before you leave little sister." She pointed to the one beside it, "This is the mark of pleasure. It shows that I have been trained in pleasuring both men and women."

She rotated to show her other thigh, "This is the mark of pain. I means I have found pleasure in pain. Finally, this..." She caressed the final one tenderly, "Is Karen's chop. It shows that she trained me. It also shows that she is my Mistress and owner." Turing to face the woman Cat displayed The Goddess's mark over her pubic bone. "Next to Karen's brand, this one is the most important. This was placed on me by the goddess. So, my sisters will know I follow her teachings and will. No matter where I go, if I see another woman with this mark, I will know she is my sister and will have my back."

As Cat sat down once more next to her she said, "Little sister, with a family, you don't need to worry about the world hating you. My family is like this place, this grove. We are at peace and safe here."

"But what about me? I don't have a family anymore."

"Little sister, when Mistress returns, all you need do is ask. I know Baby Girl would back you up as would I." She caught sight of Little Bit coming up the hill into the grove and got up to meet her. "Our little sister has realized her mistakes and knows how important it is to have a family to help and support her as she continues forward." Cat looked back at the girl and said, "This is Little Bit, she will continue from here." Cat paused and returned to the woman she hugged and kissed her before saying, "I want you to remember two things as you continue learning from my sisters. Trust them, and know they, like Baby Girl and myself, only want to help you." Standing she looked at Little Bit, "She is a good girl and one worth fighting for rather than beating down."

"I know sister, don't worry so," Little Bit replied. She walked over and sat down next to the woman. "Since you three have discussed the basics, how about we talk about pain and pleasure."

"As you wish Little Bit," she replied meekly.

"Sister, is there something you would rather talk about? You don't seem excited about the life you are about to embark on if you make the grade."

"It's not that... What is going to happen to me once I leave here?"

"I don't know. But I know that if you wish it, you won't face it alone. More importantly, with a family even the worst fears can be faced." Little Bit paused and then said, "Before I converted I was a devout Christian. I knew the goddess was a minion of the dark lord all the way down to my toe nails. But my Mistress and sisters were converting to follow her. I knew then that I had to follow and if I fell then they would be there to catch me." Little Bit paused and then added, "I have since learned that everything I learned in Sunday school was a load of crap. However, I didn't know it at the time. Sister, no matter what happens to you, if you have a family, the sisterhood at your back it means you will never be alone."

"Okay sister." She took a breath and then said, "So what is pain and pleasure like?"

Going in, Cat hit the bathroom before going to the bedroom. She was surprised to see her sisters sleeping. Not seeing Karen, she walked through the house and out to the back porch where she was sitting in the darkness on one of the chairs. Kneeling beside her Cat sat silent for a long time before saying, "I took her to the grove."

"I know Cat, I heard you tell Red." Karen replied.

"Karen she needs a family so bad it breaks my heart. She knows she fucked everything up and is so very lost right now." Cat said crying silent tears.

"It is not up to me Cat, she must ask. You know that. You know that the best place to control any relationship is from the bottom. You don't have to make the hard choices. All you have to do is a little emotional blackmail and you get what you want." Karen paused and then said, "Of course sometimes it bites you in the ass like when your Mistress knows you're trying it on her. Cat, I'm tired and know what the pair of you want. Before it is done all five of you will make the same case to me."

"Mistress, I never meant she should stay with us. I know the rules you laid down. However, that doesn't mean that when she goes out she should be thrown to the wolves either. If you send her back as is, that is exactly what will happen and you know it. Better to leave her a brain-dead fuck bunny than intelligent woman who can't stop being a fuck bunny. Do you hate her so much that you would make her spend the rest of her life in hell?"

Karen handed her the glass, "Refill this for me and try it out of a glass. It makes a difference."

Cat knew it was Karen's way of reminding her to shut up and soldier. She poured two glasses of whisky and returned. As she started to kneel Karen gestured for her to sit in the chair next to her. "I'm sorry I upset you, Mistress. I didn't mean to."

"I know Cat. Even so, the fact remains that she will be branded a slave and returned to Doc. I had to pay 250 thousand to be able to keep Tiffany and that is from a step father who didn't want her around anyways. God knows how much the Doc would charge for me to keep a blackmailer who has been making his life a living hell." Karen sighed. "She will become part of the sisterhood, that much I am sure of. As for the rest, I have no clue." She looked at Cat, "Lucky for me that you volunteered to stay up all night with me and find a solution."

"Yes lucky for both of us." Cat replied. "I should have just brought the bottle," she added a moment later.

By the time morning came and Red, the last girl had been up there for two hours, Karen and Cat had a plan worked out. She sent Cat up to get the girl and being the suspicious type she got dressed, and opened the truck door as the three came down. She put her purse inside the truck and turned to the woman, "Now that you have talked to my sisters, what have you decided? Do you wish to be a slave to man or join our sisterhood?"

Cindy walked past Karen towards the back of the truck and glanced inside. "I don't know..." Turning back she said, "I refuse to be a slave to man, that much I know." She smiled took a step towards Karen and said, "I know what I want and need to do." With that she turned jumped in the truck and locked the door. "I need to go to the police and turn you in for kidnapping me you bunch of psychopaths'. Or you can pay to keep me quiet... your choice bitch."

"Good luck with that," Karen said. She looked at Cat who stood looking dumbstruck and said, "Would you go get me a pistol and tell Baby Girl I need a hole dug." Cat nodded with wide eyes and hurried inside. Looking at Red, she said, "If it seems too good to be true then it most likely is. We learned that the hard way in Afghanistan." She looked at the girl in the truck and added, "It would help your case if you had the keys or at least a phone." She dug into her pocket and pulled out her keys and then her phone. "In short, you're fucked."

"Mistress I..." Red began but stopped by a look.

A moment later Cat returned with the pistol and her other sisters. Baby Girl looked at the woman in the truck and shook her head before going to the shed. Taking the pistol Karen checked to make sure there was one in the chamber. Pointing it at the woman she said, "You can come out on your own." She shot the windows out just missing the woman by a hair. "Or the next round will blow your brains out and my slaves get to clean the mess. It's all the same to me... bitch."

She realized the woman would kill her and said, "Don't shoot." She crawled out of the truck and knelt before the woman with her head lowered. "I submit to you, Mistress."

"And I'm Santa Clause." Karen replied. "We both know the moment my back is turned you are going to run. You should have run last night when you had the chance." Karen paused, "Put her to the wall." As the girls swarmed forward she said, "Cat... not you."

Cat knelt with head lowered and knew she was in for it. When Karen didn't speak she looked up at her Mistress and sister. "Mistress, I thought I was getting through to her."

"If it had been someone like your sisters then I would have agreed. But we are talking about someone who always looks at herself first and was a first class bitch." Karen said not looking down at her. "Remember what I said to the bouncer about looking at the eyes?"

"Yes Mistress," Cat replied after a moment.

"Cat, you see good in everyone. If you had been able to see her eyes you would have known, she was stringing you girls along." She paused a long time and then said, "I hoped your way would work but feared I would have to step in." Karen looked down, "You girls gave it your best shot, now it's my turn. Come along."

Going down Karen found the other four girls kneeling with their head lowered. She pointed to the floor and Cat joined them. She said, "You will watch without moving or looking away. We will discuss your failure later." As she walked toward the woman she said coldly, "You only wish you had tried to run sooner." Over the next several hours Karen played with her body. By the time she was done she was slathered in sweat and needed a shower. She looked at the woman hanging loosely from her bonds and then her slaves. "Baby Girl, ready the box."

Baby Girl went over to a wooden hope chest set off to one side covered in dust. Wiping it down she then rolled it over to where Karen was standing and opened it. She looked at the steel lining and then her Mistress. "Mistress, would you like additional restraints?" she asked meekly.

"Locking wrist to ankle, ankle to thigh." Karen replied not looking at her.

She quickly got the restraints and when Karen nodded she released the woman who fell to the floor. Baby Girl quickly bound her, man handled her over to the box and then into it. She was worried about Karen's lack of words and the look in her eyes. As she returned to her place she grabbed the pistol and put it between her open legs on the floor.

Karen looked down at the woman, "My slaves think I have crossed over into darkness. However, they are wrong Cindy. I really don't want to turn you into a mindless fuck toy or kill you. Think about your choices, your real choices while in isolation." She closed the lid and turned to the five girls.

"Before we begin, let me point out two things. First I have now been up since yesterday morning and secondly my head still hurts like someone is pounding on it with a ballpeen hammer." Karen paused and look at the pistol between Baby Girl's legs and said, "You five fucked up. Every one of you did." She pointed to the box as she continued, "There is a woman who has been taken to edge because you lost sight of the task. She is now in 24 hours' isolation because I had to clean your mess."

She locked eyes with Baby Girl and said, "If you think I crossed over then shoot; if not then clean, reload and replace. I want you five to think real hard about your mistakes and then come up. In the mean time I need a shower and some aspirin."

She was walking across the driveway when she heard a twig snapping and she passed out. When she came to, Karen found herself lying face down in the middle of the driveway. The moment she tried to roll over and get up she realized she had stroked out. Her left side was so much dead meat. She managed to roll over and dig her phone out with her right hand and in desperation dialed 911. In a slurred voice she said, "Help I had a stroke... driveway...1970 Burgess road..." she dropped the phone as she blacked out again.

She woke up in an ambulance with a stranger and Cat. "FUBAR Major..." she managed to get out before fading out once more. From then on it was a series of snapshots, in ER where a fight over her clothes was going on. In a machine with a tunnel, a chopper flight where she thought she was back in combat once more. One memory stuck out, she was lying face down while people talked over her and to her. The next thing she knew she was lying in a bed and heard Red and Darkstar talking.

"Star, that bitch needs to pay."

"That's not our call Red.

"Like hell... Look at Karen, she hasn't moved since the bitch operated last week."

"The bitch said it takes time," Darkstar said.

"Time my ass... she's gone I tell you. It's time we pick a new High Priestess and move forward."

"Do you even hear yourself?" DarkStar said backing up. "I'll be no part of your game Red. I think you better leave now."

"I'd pick a direction and start running Red." Karen said opening her eyes. "And pray Baby Girl gets you before I do." She realized she had movement in her left side and pulled herself up. "Darkstar would you find my clothes; I have a hunt to start."

"Mistress it's not like that..." Red said looking around franticly.

"I'll even give you my debit card. Take it Red. The password is 41 42. With half a mill you should be able to run quite some ways with it. And when you stop running and turn around I will be standing there." Karen said coldly. "Take the card and the stairs because the minute Sandy and Marie hear they will snap and you'll be fucked." She saw Darkstar hadn't moved and said, "Tiff please find my clothes, we're getting out of here and going home."

She crumpled to the floor and said, "Just kill me Mistress. I would rather your slow death than the quick one Baby Girl and Cat would give me." Red didn't look up, "I thought you were gone Karen. They only gave you a twenty percent chance of waking up and that was a week ago."

She started removing the leads to the EKG machine and the IV line as she talked, "Red I was joking about killing you. You know I don't have it in me. Please run away for both our sakes. Because the punishment will make you beg for death." As Tiffany brought her clothes Karen started getting dressed slowly, "Find the others and not a word about Red's issues to them DarkStar."

"Yes Mistress," Darkstar said rushing out of the room. A moment later a nurse rushed in and stopped dead.

"Staff Sergeant O'Malley what do you think you are doing? Stop that this instant." The nurse said in her best command voice.

"You have two choices nurse. You can get the doctor and whatever forms in need to check out or you can try and stop me. If you do that young lady on the floor feeling sorry for herself will do her level best to kill you."

Red looked up and stood. "Leave now," she said in a dead voice. The nurse backed up and left the room without turning to look at Karen she said, "I'll get you out of here even if it kills me Mistress. We had better hurry though, the next one in will be a pair of orderlies. Big ones."

"Help me with my boots," Karen said.

The girl quickly put Karen's socks and boots on before standing once more. "See if you can stand," She said.

She managed to get to her feet but the room spun and she felt faint. "Where's the damn taser when I need it."

Red stepped away and dug into her Mistress's purse. "Here it is Mistress," she said handing it over. Even though she knew what Karen was going to do it shocked her anyways.