Ricochet

This is an alternative ending to the story "SEVENTY-THREE - CATHERINE'S STORY" by RebeccaSymmons. (https://www.literotica.com/series/se/seventy-three-catherines-story). It replaces the last chapter. The original is much better written than my version, which also lacks the sexy bits. I have contacted the original author RebeccaSymmons and she has agreed that I propose an alternative solution.

However the original has a logical fault contradicting itself. In the beginning, it is made clear, that Oakham disallows abuse and damage of the slaves. However the actions of the character Lloyd are abusive, because they are not targeted at the slave Catherine, but take revenge on Kate Adams, his former manager. For me, this destroys the story altogether.

So I wrote a version where Oakham has to face the consequences of failing to protect Catherine.

Of course, we would all love to fantasize absolute control without a safety net. But that requires responsible behavior from the dominants. Mistreating subs (slaves) leads to psychological damage.

I feel strongly about this, because a fantasy that is based on 19th-century views about women's (non-)liberation does not appeal to me. Particularly if it is not set in the 19th century, but in the 21st century. We are living out BDSM in the 21st century and if men want women to submit to them sexually, we must deal with the evolution of society.

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When Kate woke up the next morning, the bruises and battering were still there. But these did not worry her. She had gotten used to them and in all other circumstances, she would have been proud of them. But now they reminded her of her ordeal.

She went into the kitchen to help herself to a nourishing breakfast. Coffee and muesli always gave her energy and lifted her spirits. Not this morning. Oscar came along to schmooze along her bare legs. She picked him up and the tears started to flow.

The degradation she had reveled in so many times felt different this time. It did not turn into pride and contentment. This time it was not Catherine the fantasy slave who had been degraded. This time Kate Adams the real person had been degraded and injured. The memory of the talk with Weston and Richard came into her mind. Then Weston had clearly stated that injury, belittling, and abuse were not accepted by Oakham.

Visions of that man Reyland came into her mind. He had obviously not been an Oakham member and had been so dirty.

Wait, not from Oakham? Dirty? What if he was more than dirty but ill? All members of Oakham had undergone health screening. But Reyland? Probably not. Ok, she had sucked his dick, so the risk of infection was limited. But if she would not have fled, he would have fucked her and that might have risked her health.

She needed to get this off her chest and to talk it through with someone.

Richard? No, he was in a different time zone.

Hence she called Helen and Elizabeth. Both were surprised but immediately heard the urgency in her voice.

An hour later they arrived at her house. She recounted her history as far as she could remember from the haze that was in her mind.

Elizabeth started first, "I have always admired to what degree you could get into the role of a slave. Much deeper than I could have, that is why I have always kept Robin as my owner. But apparently, this was too much, even for you."

"But I have let down Oakham," she answered.

"No," Helen cut in, "Oakham has let you down. This fantasy world can only exist if security and privacy are ensured. And not only for members, but also for slaves."

"Let's try to make some sense of this." Elizabeth suggested, "Do you have a piece of paper?"

Kate reached into a drawer and grabbed the next empty sheet that lay there. When she took it out, the surface felt unusual. It was thick, almost like parchment. When she turned it around, she saw that it was not empty. The top of the sheet had an imprint: "Kate Adams, Esq." It was one of her old sheets that she had used as a lawyer.

And suddenly her old personality came back to her. She had allowed others to control her, and she had done it consciously and enjoyed it. But she had the ability to defend herself. She was an attorney at law. She could stand her point in court and not be intimidated by the tricks of an old colleague.

This sheet said Esquire, not gallery owner or slave.

Elizabeth asked, "What about you now? Will you go back to Oakham, can you go back?"

Kate pondered for a moment. "I really enjoyed being a slave and if this would not have happened, I would have loved to continue. But as it is now, I cannot go back."

"Yes, not to this Oakham. But maybe Oakham has to change."

"But what can one do against a secret society of wealthy and powerful men?" Helen asked.

"Well, that might be our weapon. As a wealthy and powerful man, you cannot risk getting into the limelight with sexual preferences considered abnormal. I believe this case has enough in it, to warrant a formal lawsuit against Oakham. And then all those wealthy men would have to testify. The tabloids will pounce on them."

Thoughtfully Elizabeth added, "Now that we are speaking about it, rumors come back to my mind, about words from other slaves about transgressions. Let me make a few calls later today."

With that, they parted.

After brewing another big hot cup of coffee, Kate opened her computer and started typing. When she had finished, she took another sheet of her official stationery as a lawyer and printed out a letter.

Then she went down to the gym room, where she had spent so many hours in her role as a slave. She spent the rest of the afternoon there until she did not feel any more sores from yesterday's torture but only from her trained muscles.

In the evening Richard called.

"Hi Kate, what is going on? Graham has informed me that you broke the rules of Oakham. How could you do that?"

Kate started to cry again. "It was terrible. It was Sebastian Lloyd; you know the guy I kicked out due to sexual harassment. He sought revenge on me. He brought in some filthy guy from outside. He was disgusting, and I was not feeling well, and... what if he'd been on drugs or he had something, some disease?"

"Kate, it was supposed to be a challenge. This guy had been tested, so there was no health risk for you."

"I could not know this at that moment, so it was the right thing to do to protect myself. This was a revenge thing. You do not know Sebastian Lloyd; he might have been able to take it that far. And there is not only the health risk. There is emotional risk as well and if mental strain is taken too far, then people might get broken. I fear that I have been broken "

"Kate, I need to hang up. I need to get back to my client. I will be back later next week. Bye."

"Good Bye Love."

He hung up. No word that he loved her, as he always did. Why did he only see the side of Oakham? had he not heard her last sentence? She knew, he never really partook in the boisterous events as a dom but apparently he had started to mistake the fantasy world that Oakham creates for its members for real or as more important than protecting the real Kate. His real Kate. But it sounded like she was now only Catherine-the-slave for him. The love of her life had abandoned her.

After some more crying and pondering she picked up her phone and typed a message to Richard that just added two words: " Gone Forever".

She kept staring at the phone until the messenger app showed her that he had read it.

She sat there still dazed. After her sexual adventure had come to a forceful end, would her marriage also end?

After some time, her phone rang. It was Richard.

"Kate, please forgive me. I have been an asshole. Of course, you are right. This should not have been allowed to happen. I have canceled all further meetings. I am packing and will head to the airport immediately. I will be with you tomorrow."

"Oh, Richard, thank you. After all this losing your support would have been the worst."

"What will you do now?"

"I will set a few things right."

Richard sighed, "Could night my dear strong wife. I love you."

"I love you too. Please protect me."

Soon afterwards Elizabeth called. "Kate, I have been able to confirm the rumors. I have talked to several former and existing slaves, and they also had experiences that went beyond what they had agreed upon."

"With Sebastian Lloyd?"

"No," Elizabeth answered, "other men. At least six women."

"That is awful to think of. That is six persons whose trust and integrity have been injured. But for us, it is great leverage."

Having done all she could do this evening, she went to bed and slept much better than the night before.

In the morning she went to her wardrobe and rummaged through it. In the end, she found what she was looking for. The old pants suit that she had been wearing in court for what seemed ages ago, but it was only 3 years. She also deliberately did not put on any makeup. Then she drove to Oakham. Grace Edwards was already there.

"Welcome Catherine, what brings you to us today?" Apparently, the news about her situation had not reached her yet.

"Good morning, Grace, is Graham in?"

"No, and I do not know if he will come in; he has no appointments here today."

"Oh, too bad. For him. Grace, can I ask you something?"

"Grace looked at her questioningly, "Yes of course."

"You said you are a feminist, and that you despise what Oakham does. How come you are here for so long without achieving anything?"

"To be honest, I do not despise all of Oakham. I have come to grips with sadomasochism. To tell the truth, I love whipping women. I am a lesbian domme. And the job here gives me lots of opportunities."

"But what about the feminist side of things?" Kate followed up.

"There are aspects of Oakham I do despise. Some of the old rich blokes are trying to act as if 100 years of women's liberation have not happened. They are not here for good sex and the BDSM play. They are just misogynistic, and they are here to take their revenge on women. But someday that will backfire on them."

"You know what Grace? That day is today. Can you get Graham to come in immediately?"

"Yes, I can try. But can you fill me in on your plans?"

Kate gave another recount of what happened. In the meantime, she could retell it without bursting into tears.

"Kate, this is awful. I have heard rumors and a few slaves have confided in me over time. But your case is the worst. I will call Graham right now."

She got on the phone. "Hi Graham, Grace calling. We have a .. uhm kind of situation here at Oakham. I think it would be good if you came in as quickly as you can. ... No, I cannot exactly tell you what is going on. But it might be that the seclusion and future of Oakham as such are at risk. .... Ok, thank you. Then I can expect to see you here soon."

"Is he coming over?"

"Yes, but it is going to be over an hour in London traffic. What do you want to do until then?"

"I will just wait with a cup of tea in his office."

It was less than an hour before Weston arrived. She heard him come in. "Good morning, Grace. What is this situation? Where is it?"

"Hi Graham, the situation sits in your office."

He came in and looked puzzled. "You Catherine? Welcome. I am aware of what has been happening with Sebastian. How dare you call me into the office for such a petty thing? And you are not following our dress code. You do know, not to wear any trousers."

"Graham, let me start by informing you that my name is not Catherine. You have suspended my membership. Hence you are not talking to Catherine-the-slave any more, but to Kate Adams, who happens to be an attorney at law. And I kindly ask you to address me as such. To proceed I suggest that you read this document."

She handed over what she had written. Graham sat down. As the sentences before his eyes sunk in, he turned pale.

"Ms Adams, you cannot do that. Are you aware that this will mean the end of Oakham? And you have signed a contract."

"Come on Graham, you yourself have told me on day one, that this contract holds no legal value. Graham we all know that the games we played are of the kind called consensual non-consent. But I have clearly indicated to Sebastian that I do not consent anymore. And through that everything that happened counts as assault and rape. There is a thin line, and this line has been breached. We slaves can only open ourselves in our roles when we are protected, and Oakham has failed to protect me."

"Ok, we can throw out Sebastian."

"That is by far not enough. It is also personal between you and me. You did not have the guts to call me and ask for my view on this. You called Richard instead. And you had been aware that there is a conflict between Sebastian and me, that goes beyond Oakham. Still, you handed me over to him by 'selling' me as his exclusive slave. And Oakham received a fee on that. In court, this will be seen as human trafficking. The maximum sentence on indictment is up to 14 years imprisonment. For you."

Weston was an eggshell of a dom. Once the shell was cracked, he was all soft and gooey. He started to wince.

"Kate, excuse me, Ms Adams, please. What can we do?"

"I do not want to destroy Oakham. It has given me immense pleasure. But it must adapt to the society of the 21st century. I give you 24 hours to produce a proposal for a modernized Oakham. Or tomorrow at noon the shit will hit the fan. Your proposal must be serious."

She got up. "See you tomorrow."

On the way out she hugged Grace. And whispered in her ear, "I will not be able to get any more treatments from Oakham soon. But I still need them. Maybe you can give me a whipping. And I will give my best to pleasure you if you allow me."

Grace smiled. "You have turned from being the worst enemy to my hero. I can certainly do that. Just say when."

From Oakham she drove to the airport to pick up Richard. When he came through customs, they raced to each other and hugged and kissed.

"Kate, I have been such a fool. I got carried away by this fantasy. And up to now, I have only heard Grahams, that is Sebastian's side of the story. Please tell me what really happened."

On their way back she told him what had happened, and he became aware that he had been given a very one-sided view of the events.

The next morning, they made their way back to Oakham. Weston was already in. As it turned out he had done some serious thinking.

"Ms Adams, Richard I propose the following: We immediately stop all events and plays until the new measures are in place. Then we refine the contracts with our members and the slave contract. We will all inform them that there must be a compulsory safeword. We will distinguish between normal play, where the safeword will simply be 'Stop', and consensual non-consent with a special safeword. We will of course expel Sebastian and several other members that Grace has informed me about. We will also introduce a screening and feedback process for the slaves so that we immediately hear of any transgressions. Is that appropriate for you?"

Kate looked at Richard. "I think that is a good start."

When they arrived back home Richard had already received an email from Oakham, informing him that all events were suspended and that a new membership agreement would be presented soon, that all members would have to sign to continue. Kate got an equivalent email.

The following days she worked with Graham to set up the new contracts and the feedback process. In the process, quite a few members resigned. In all about half of the members left, but none of the slaves.

One evening, Grace arrived at their home. She did not wear her business costume from Oakham but rather a one-piece leather outfit. She really looked the domme.

Richard led her into the gym room. But Kate called from above. "Please come up here."

When they went upstairs to the living room, they found her nude and kneeling with her hands behind her neck. Grace walked up to her, lifted her head, and kissed her. "Hello, Kate."

Kate smiled and said: "Please mistress, my name is Catherine."