The Stables Ch. 01

Chapter One

The carriage wheels clattered noisily over the cobblestoned driveway as the driver swung into the narrow turning. There was a brief flash of a small sign with the word 'Stables' outlined in gold lettering and Emilia turned her head and smiled at her aunt who was sitting next to her.

"How far is it now, Aunt Rowena?" she inquired excitedly, almost bouncing up and down on the sprung seat of the carriage as she thought about a whole week spent riding horses at the stables.

"You are eighteen, not three, Emilia, so sit still and be patient. It is many years since I have been here; not since I have had the task of looking after you in fact when your mother and father passed away in India. Before that, I was a regular attendee and really enjoyed my time spent learning different ways in which to..."

"Ride?" interrupted Emilia, craning her head out of the window as far as she could.

"Yes, indeed, child," stated her aunt before a small, secretive smile spread across her face as she thought inwardly that for her it had been not the riding but the being ridden that had excited her. She looked at her niece's head of shining coppery curls and the dark green eyes that were always so full of life and mischief and chuckled silently as she wondered just how Emilia would get on during her week. It had certainly changed Rowena's life when she had spent a fortnight there just over twenty years earlier! Memories flooded back and her body quivered in excitement suddenly as the carriage slowed and she caught sight of the familiar buildings ahead. It would be good to see an old and very special friend again even if it was only for a brief period before she had to return to town and the mundane life of being a society hostess for her husband, a merchant banker in the city. Rowena's cheeks flushed a little as she remembered her wilfulness and how she had been tamed and literally brought to heel.

The sudden stopping of the carriage snapped her out of her reverie and she looked around her as the driver got down from the front and brought out the steps for his passengers to dismount.

"Thank you, John," Rowena murmured as the man held his arm out politely for her to use as a balance and she felt excitement course through her as she smelt the scent of the horses. Emilia rushed out of the carriage and was about to make a dash for the nearest stable where a horse's head was poking out until Rowena snapped at her to act with decorum.

"Young ladies of breeding do not dash around, Emilia!" Rowena stated firmly before she missed her niece's eye rolling response because she turned as a voice called out her name.

"Rowena Davenport! At last, you have returned to visit us and this must be your niece?" remarked a tall lady clad all in black which contrasted sharply with her pale gold hair.

"Tara... you don't seem to have changed a bit!" commented Rowena as she looked carefully at the woman whom she had not seen for so long.

"Running the Stables must agree with me then. Now come here and kiss me!" commanded Tara and Emilia watched on in surprise as her aunt, normally so stuffy and staid, hurried forward and kissed the other woman right on her soft lips.

"Has Emilia been told what to expect this week?" inquired Tara in a whisper as the two women embraced.

"Of course not, Tara. I would not dare to go against your instructions... even after all these years!"

"Good although I now have no excuse to punish you, do I?" mused Tara, smiling as her old friend blushed. "Perhaps you can think of one? I am sure that you must have misbehaved a little in the last few years, especially when your husband has been at work all day! I suggest that you make yourself comfortable in my office while I settle your niece in to her new quarters."

"Yes, of course, Tara," murmured Rowena, stepping back and then casting a glance at Emilia and wondering just how she was going to cope with what was about to happen to her. It had been a complete and utter shock to Rowena when her father had left her at the Stables so many years before but she had survived and blossomed. It had turned her from a spoilt child into a polite and obedient young lady so hopefully it would do the same for her niece!

"Follow me, Emilia, and I will get you settled in properly before I go and chat with your aunt for a while," stated Tara and she strode off towards a low, stone building set at a ninety degree angle to the stable block.

"But why aren't we going to see the horses?" moaned Emilia immediately, pouting prettily.

"Because we have other things to do, young lady. You need to earn the right to ride one of my horses!" snapped Tara, striding out faster and making Emilia, after a slight hesitation, scurry in her footsteps.

It was so annoying to be ordered round by adults all the time, thought Emilia. Unfortunately, she would not get her trust fund until she was twenty-five so that left another few years having to stay with her aunt and uncle. Both of them had lost patience with her over the last few years as she had become very determined to do exactly what she wanted regardless of what was deemed correct behaviour. Flirting outrageously at balls and daring to kiss a handsome lieutenant of the Life Guards out in the garden at a dance had been followed by refusing to accompany her aunt on boring visits to her acquaintances, drinking tea and eating tiny cakes. She had made the life of her last couple of tutors a misery by being aggravating and lazy and both had eventually quit. The final straw had come when her aunt had walked in on Emilia terrorising young Charlie, the footman, in the hall cupboard. She had had him backed into the corner, red-faced and trembling as her hands had stroked down the front of his dark trousers. That had earned her a stern talking to from both her aunt and uncle; one that had not had any effect except to make her even more determined to explore her burgeoning sexuality.

Emilia had already discovered the delight of rubbing the tiny protuberance at the top of her slit and dipping her fingers inside her wet pussy. The sweeping rush of rapture that followed always made her long for more and she had made advances to her maid only to be firmly rebuffed and then informed on. The resulting conversation with her aunt had been highly embarrassing and Emilia had been forced to apologise to her maid servant who had then been taken away by Rowena and not replaced.

"Not having a maid will help you appreciate it more when you do have one, Emilia. You can spend the time thinking about what you can ask servants to do and what you cannot!" Aunt Rowena had remarked although as far as Emilia was concerned a servant should do exactly what you told them and if that was to stand naked in the corner while you explored their body then they should damn well be obedient!

The abrupt bump into the back of Tara brought Emilia sharply out of her thoughts and she looked up and found the woman staring down at her disapprovingly.

"You are not here to wander around in a trance, girl! If you do not concentrate when you are in charge of a horse, it could be very dangerous!"

"Really? I have had some experience of riding actually. I have ridden to hounds when we have been at my uncle's country estate," sneered Emilia in response.

"I suppose that you had a groom to look after the animal though and get it ready for you?" stated Tara, chilly blue eyes focusing on Emilia's dark green ones.

"Naturally. That is what servants are for!" Emilia responded and Tara smiled slightly and decided that the next week was going to be very difficult for the girl to survive!

Rowena had found it hard too. Coming from an aristocratic family and then being taught to be obedient in all things had made the adjustment to life at the Stables tricky and Tara remembered comforting the sobbing girl and how that had turned into kissing and cuddling and then the gentle stroking until Rowena had willingly offered her body up. Tara had been just another girl then but one who was on the opposite side, training to take charge, to ride rather than be ridden. That had been her nature and still was and she was looking forward to educating Emilia although it might possibly take more than a single week. Perhaps she would have to talk to Rowena about extending the girl's stay to at least a fortnight?

"Well, unfortunately there are no servants to remove your clothing, girl, so you are going to have to do that all by yourself!" snapped Tara abruptly as she grabbed Emilia by the arm and pushed her into the small building.

"Remove my clothes? What are you on about?" protested Emilia, shrugging off the woman's powerful grip as her eyes darted wildly around, examining the inside of the building. Apart from a narrow passageway down the middle containing a large, wooden chest, it was split into six small spaces, each one barely big enough for the uncomfortable iron bedsteads that occupied it. There was no other furniture and each room, if it could be called that, was open on all sides as the walls just consisted of iron bars running down from the ceiling to the floor.

"Take off your clothes and then I might give you some new ones, Emilia," stated Tara patiently, allowing her new trainee a bit of latitude.

"Not a chance! I like this dress and it is perfectly suitable for riding in! Just let me out of here immediately," raged Emilia. "I am going to go home with my aunt!"

"No, you are not, girl. You are going to stay with me and learn how to be obedient, just like your aunt did many years ago."

Emilia assimilated that intriguing piece of information, green eyes narrowing, and then she tried to dart past the formidable figure in front of her. Tara was prepared for the move though and caught the girl's arm and swiftly twisted it up behind her back while she used her momentum to run her face first into the bars of one of the rooms.

"Get off me!" hissed Emilia, face reddening as she tried in vain to slither away. Tara ignored the girl's protestations and forced her down to her knees, gripping her neck tightly in one hand while the other held her wrist up behind her back. Straddling Emilia suddenly, Tara wound a strip of leather round the girl's wrist then forced the other one up behind her back too and tied it securely to the first one. Taking a dog collar from the wooden chest, she clipped that round Emilia's throat and then tightened it up, forcing the girl's head up as the thick leather bit into her soft skin. Dragging Emilia up onto her feet despite her struggles, Tara pushed her back against the bars then attached a little chain to the collar's metal ring where the lead would normally go then attached the clip on the other end of the chain around one of the bars thus trapping the girl completely.

"There is always something worse to follow if you don't obey, Emilia!" Tara whispered in the sobbing girl's ear. "As you would not remove your clothes, I am going to do it for you now. You had the choice and you failed to be obedient so then I am going to punish you as well!"

Emilia went wild, pulling against the chain that connected her to the bars and trying to wriggle out of the leather thong that bound her hands. She screamed out in anger and frustration but Tara just stood back and watched her coolly, years of experience telling her that the girl would soon wear herself out. It did take several minutes but finally Emilia stopped shouting and wriggling and stood facing the iron bars, face as red as a tomato and heaving in deep breaths.

"I think that it will take some time to teach you the art of self control, girl, but I do like a challenge," murmured Tara, stepping forward and undoing the top button on the back of Emilia's dress. She unfastened the next two before the girl realised what was happening and started wriggling again, trying to forestall the inevitable. Tara smiled and continued slowly to undo the buttons, pushing Emilia forward into the unyielding bars every so often if she squirmed too much.

"Don't you dare!" snapped Emilia as Tara started to slide the silken material off her shoulders.

"I don't think that you are in any position to make demands or issue threats, young lady! Think to yourself for a moment and consider, is what I am doing any worse than having your maid undress you at home? Doesn't she see you naked? I am sure that she did before she was taken away because you tried to make her submit to you or was it the other way round as I heard that you wished to kiss her all over?"

"Who told you that?" whimpered Emilia, blushing furiously as she remembered how the maid, just a few years older, had stood there like a statue for a moment as she had kissed her. Emilia had then sunk down on her knees and pressed her face against the woman's thighs and that had broken the spell as the maid had backed away and gone to tell her aunt... who it seemed must have told this horrible woman at some point!

"Yes, your dear aunt told me in her letter. She also informed me about the footman you trapped in the cupboard, Emilia. Reputation is everything for a woman of your social standing and fooling around with servants will get you a very bad one indeed! The Stables will teach you control and discipline but also how to be obedient and serve your betters... like me and whomever I deem to be worthy of enjoying you!"

Emilia was still trying to work out what the woman was on about as her dress slithered off her shoulders and pooled around her hips. She smiled slightly to herself as it got stuck, rejoicing in the tiny victory but then her heart sank as Tara produced a pair of scissors from the chest and cut the material away, leaving Emilia just in her stockings and the silk, almost sheer, chemise that barely covered her bottom cheeks. Tara smiled at the sight then slowly lifted up the silken undergarment. Emilia went wild once more, pulling against the leather collar round her neck but all she managed to do was to hurt herself as there was no way she was going to manage to unclip it from the bars without the use of her hands. Tara pulled the shift higher then started to cut it with the scissors, snipping away steadily until it fell away in two pieces and left the girl in just her silk stockings, pert white buttocks fully on display and ready to suffer.

Waiting for a few moments until Emilia had calmed down once more, Tara announced sternly, "I was going to spank you for your misbehaviour, Emilia!"

"Spank me? If you lay a finger on me then I will..." Emilia's voice tailed away into nothingness as she tried to think of an appropriate threat.

"Tell your dear aunt perhaps? The lady who arranged for you to come here so that your behaviour could be improved? I don't think that she would care even if you were able to tell her, my dear spoilt girl. As I was saying, I was going to spank you but I have decided..."

Emilia heaved out a sigh of relief which made Tara's smile widen before she continued, "I have decided to use a strap instead of my hand as I think you need a sharp reminder to encourage obedience in future! A quick dozen before I go and see your aunt and have a long conversation with her about how she wishes you to be trained!"

Emilia begged and pleaded, embarrassing herself as she tried to avoid being punished. It had always worked with her aunt previously but Tara was implacable; an unmoving rock adamantly resisting Emilia's flood of words. Hearing noises behind her, Emilia craned her head round as much as she could then shivered as she watched Tara pick out a broad leather strap split into two at the end from the wooden chest. It dangled threateningly from her hand as she calmly informed her victim that it was known as a tawse.

"Please... don't!" pleaded Emilia in one final attempt to dissuade the woman but it was to no avail and then she was squealing out in agony as the heavy leather swung through the air and caressed her bottom cheeks with its twin tails. The breath whooshed out of Emilia's mouth as her buttocks shook under the impact and Tara watched in appreciation as a broad swathe of vivid red blossomed on the girl's pale white skin.

"Eleven more strokes to go, Emilia, unless I decide to add more on because you have failed to count the number and then thank me. Repeat after me... One, thank you, Miss Tara."

Obdurately, Emilia shook her head, refusing to submit so Tara just smiled and swung the tawse once more, whipping it almost lazily across the pert bottom cheeks and revelling in the scream that burst from the girl's soft lips.

"Say it or that stroke will not count either, girl!" Tara snapped as Emilia writhed against the metal bars. No sound came so Tara swished the tawse across the reddening flesh again and Emilia broke, sobbing out the words as pain overwhelmed her, stinging her soft skin like a thousand angry bees. The next stroke whipped over her aching arse cheeks and she squealed once more then managed to force out the count and add her tormentor's name on too despite the pain that mushroomed in her brain. The next few minutes were agonising as Tara played the leather across Emilia's naked flesh. Each stroke made the girl cry out as the sharp agony sliced into her defenceless skin and then came the added humiliation of acknowledging the woman who was creating the pain with skilful flicks of her strong wrist.

"A full dozen plus two has made your bottom look lovely, my dear Emilia. Positively glowing with life," remarked Tara, teasing her hand over the heated skin and feeling the warmth suffuse her palm. The soft skin almost danced under her fingers and she wickedly slipped her hand between the girl's lightly parted thighs and touched her slit. It was wet, positively dripping with moisture and Tara rubbed along its length then pulled her fingers away and sniffed ostentatiously by Emilia's ear before remarking on the scent and slipperiness, adding, "Such a response means that you are a submissive, girl, just like your aunt! I am going to enjoy teaching you just as much, I think!"

Leaving Emilia still attached to the bars by the collar and chain and naked apart from her silken stockings, Tara left the little building, smiling widely as she thought about the delights to come. Emilia, tears running down her face and dripping onto the cold iron bars, tried to fight off the stinging sensations that suffused her skin while she also tried to deny Tara's accusation despite the pulsing in her clitoris. Hadn't she fought against the woman? How did that make her submissive then? Perhaps the wetness in her pussy was just some accident? But as the minutes passed, the heat in her body increased rather than dissipated and Emilia just wished that she had her hands free and could tease her sopping slit into ecstasy like she often did during the long night hours. Shifting position slightly, she pushed her legs either side of the cold metal bars and tried to rub her soft slit on the hard iron but, to her dismay, she could not achieve quite the right position and so frustration at her failure added to her tears of self-pity.