EPOV

When Tanya touched me in the club, I went into shock. I was hardly aware of what was going on around me and was just trying to continue breathing – in, out, in, out. I could just make out that Bella was standing in front of me, virtually shielding me from Tanya's view. I registered that they were arguing on something but could not really comprehend what was being said. After some time I heard Tanya's voice "….take her over my lap right here and show her the consequences of her outrageous behavior". That's when I realized that Tanya was threatening to take Bella on her lap. I could not let that happen ever, Tanya should not be allowed anywhere near my Bella, let alone touch her. I had to remove her to safety – ""Isabella, enough now. Please go get your coat, we are leaving immediately." I almost pleaded with her.

'I'm not leaving till Tanya is removed from the premises first." Why was she not listening to me? Didn't she know I cannot take any chances with her safety and well being.

Bella's defiance encouraged Tanya - 'Hah, look at her, defying a direct order from her master. This girl really needs to learn her manners and since her master is incapable to do so, I will gladly do it on his behalf. After all, I am his mistress. Any sub of his becomes my sub automatically.' And then she caught hold of Bella's arm, pulling her away from me.

That's when I simply lost it. I pulled Bella away from Tanya physically and ordered her again to leave immediately. But Bella did not heed to my words again. Of all the times to show her stubbornness, she chose this time when I was going out of my mind trying to protect her from the abusive bitch. Then I felt Dad near me. He also tried to get Bella to leave, but she did not listen to him as well. Now I was furious at her – she did not listen to me first and now she was defying Carlisle, who was not only a father figure for her but also a much senior dom and our mentor. She should not be disrespecting him. Before I could take any further action, Dad said something quietly to her and she finally left the room.

"Dad.."

"Edward, go. I will handle everything here."

When I reached Bella, she tried to talk to me, but I was too angry to think clearly and discuss whatever had happened. So I quickly reprimanded her, reminding her at the same time that she is still wearing my collar. She looked suitably subdued after that and did not try to talk at all. When we reached home, I quickly ordered her into the playroom. We needed to address her punishment for the stunt she had pulled in the club. I could feel anger rolling off me – though I was not sure how much of that was directed towards Bella and how much was towards me.

I took a few deep breaths and had a glass of water before going to the playroom. I needed to reign in my anger before I started to deliver Bella's punishment. When I felt reasonably calm, I entered the playroom finding her on the whipping bench. I stood for a minute just inside the door, looking at her. She looked so serene lying on the bench waiting for what would undoubtedly be the toughest punishment of her life. I was always amazed at her quiet strength and grace. In spite of the circumstances, there was no tension whatsoever in her posture.

I cleared my head and went to the chest of drawers. Looking at what she had done, I would have liked to cane her. But cane was her hard limit and I had to respect that. So I decided on the next best option – the leather strap. I knew she totally despised it and it did leave quite a sting.

I then moved near the bench and asked her to list down her offences and the pre-decided punishments for them. She was actually surprised when I asked her the punishment for disrespecting another dom. She then tried to be a smart mouth, but I reminded her that she is in deep trouble as it is and should not do anything to make it worse.

Once she calculated the final tally of strikes she was to receive for the infractions today, I could feel her fear. I then gave her the chance to back out, by using her safe word. That must have reminded her that she had all the power and that she could stop all this in a second by using her safe word. This realization seemed to have calmed her and she was composed enough to start.

Once she was ready, I did not waste any more time and started her punishment. She was actually taking it quite well, but by the time we reached 30 she was crying. That was when I started feeling uneasy. Punishing her was always extremely difficult for me. It killed me to see her in pain, more so when I was the reason of the pain. But I had never before felt uneasy because I always punished her only when she deserved to be. And the punishment always matched the offence – not more, not less. But then why did it felt as if I was abusing Bella right now, just like Tanya had abused me?

On the 40th strike, she screamed and I could not take it anymore. I threw away the strap as if it was burning my hands. She never, absolutely never, screamed during a punishment. This must be way beyond her tolerance.

That's when it really hit me – Oh my God, what have I done - 50 strikes with the strap! Have I gone completely mad? How could I do this to Bella? It was way too harsh, no one could endure these many strikes in one go, let alone my fragile Bella. And how could I subject her to such extreme pain? What right did I have to cry foul with Tanya when I did the same to my wife, the person who I loved with my whole being? She blindly trusted me to take care of her, to know her limits and to never push her beyond what she could handle. And what did I do - I threw away all her trust and love, just because I was angry and frustrated with myself - for not standing up to Tanya, for not being able to tell her to shut up and get lost; something that Bella did on my behalf. Once she saw I was down, she stood up and took care of me. By shielding me from Tanya she saved me from making a fool of myself in front of the entire club. I should have worshipped at her feet; instead I beat the hell out of her. It should be me on the whipping bench instead of her.

I fell down on my knees and started rubbing her ass cheeks and upper thighs to help alleviate some of her pain. She was crying badly and I wanted to just take her in my arms and make all the pain go away. I wanted to hurt myself badly for what I had done to my sweetheart, but Bella needed me more at this time. My punishment could wait.

I asked her for her safe word. I badly wanted her to use her safe word and spare herself and me from going through any more of this unnecessary pain. But stubborn that she was, she simply refused to give up. Even when she could not even speak clearly, she said green. I asked her again – but the same answer.

Why wouldn't she say Red – because you dimwit if she has to use her safe word, it would mean you failed her. And she will never let you fail – even at great personal cost. When I understood this, I was devastated. I had no option but to go through with her punishment – because I was her dom and if I went back on my words, both of us will start second-guessing all my words and actions in future. So now I had to give her 10 more strikes. That was just the beginning of my punishment – to give her more pain than she can tolerate, to break her faith in me as her husband and as her dom.

I kissed her bruised ass lightly and then steeled myself for what was to come. That's when I realized – I had a way to lessen her suffering at the same time complete the punishment. The strikes were with the implement of my choice. Who said I need to use the same implement for the entire punishment. My choice could change anytime I want it to. Decision made – I relaxed a little bit and then told her that the last 10 are going to be by my hand. I could see her relaxing visibly. Though she was still crying, I could feel that she was relieved a lot. I vowed to myself that I will be as gentle as possible. And so the 10 strikes were like 10 soft taps on her ass. Even when I was being so gentle, she would visibly stiffen before each strike and relax again only when the strike was indeed a soft caress. This pained me the most – though consciously she was demonstrating her trust in me, subconsciously her body was showing the exact opposite – her body was telling me clearly that it did not trust my hand any longer and that it expected me to hurt her even more than I had already done. I didn't fault her for this – not at all – I was completely at fault here, I was the one who had completely failed her.

The moment the 10 strikes were done, I removed her collar and tried to console her as best as I could. I lifted her very carefully from the blasted bench and gently cradled her in my arms. All this time, she was clinging to me desperately and crying bitterly. My heart broke into a thousand pieces seeing what I had done to her. I took her to the bed in the playroom and laid her on it face down. I had to look at her injuries and take care of them before I could wallow in guilt and self-hatred. When I tried to get up, she simply cling to me harder, refusing to let me go.

"I'm not going anywhere sweetheart. I'm right here." I tried to assure her, "let me just take care of you". I quickly retrieved the medical box we kept in the playroom. It was fully equipped for any emergency that we may have in the playroom. I then went to the en-suite bathroom and rinsed a wash cloth in warm water. I would have liked to give Bella a warm bath, but she did not have the strength to get up from the bed and relax in the tub. Plus, the bruises would sting very much in water. I came back and started washing her bruises softly with the wash cloth. Even though I was being very careful, Bella hissed with pain every time the wash cloth made contact with her skin. I was literally operating on auto pilot – that was the only way I could continue taking care of her without breaking down completely.

I finished washing up her ass and thighs and then looked at them for the first time clearly. I flinched at the damage done – she had angry welts covering her entire ass and upper thighs. At many places, the welts had broken the skin and bloody lines could be seen. I wanted to kill myself for this – how could I do this? These would definitely leave a mark on her. And take a lot of time in healing. I could see the swelling around the bruises clearly. I had to get Dad to look at them and treat them professionally so that Bella could recover with as less pain as possible. Just as I was getting the phone out of my pant pockets to call him, it started ringing – Dad was calling.

I picked up the call – "Dad.." I chocked, suddenly overwhelmed with all the guilt and worry for Bella.

"Edward", Dad was instantly alarmed, "what happened son? Are you all right? Where is Bella?"

"Its Bella Dad..she is", I hesitated, my parents loved her as one of their own, "she is hurt Dad, really hurt. I have hurt her badly, please can you come? She needs you" I was frantic.

"Edward..no..don't say anything to Dad, please?" pleaded Bella. Her voice was filled with pain and tears.

On the phone, Dad was agitated "Edward, what do you mean you have hurt her? Why is she crying? And why does she not want you to say anything to me? So help me God, if you have done anything to her for today….. I swear by her Edward that by the time I am finished with you, whatever Tanya did to you will seem like a cake walk"

"No, please no Dad, Edward… please no, I can't…." Dad was so loud that Bella had heard everything he said.

"I will gladly take all that and more, Dad, I promise. Just come and take care of my angel first. Please" I pleaded with him. He would have heard the pain in my voice; he sighed and seemed to have calmed down a bit. "I should be there in 5 mins son, I was already on my way when I called. I just hope that things are better than they sound." With that he hanged up.

I breathed a sigh of relief knowing that he will be here shortly. I removed my shirt. I knew she would not want Dad to see her without any clothes on. "Sweetheart, Dad will be here shortly. Let me help you in my shirt". She shifted uncomfortably and I quickly helped her into my shirt. She was still sobbing softly when I took her in my arms again. I don't know how long it will be before I'll be able to hold my Bella close to me like this after Dad gets here. I knew in my heart that things were actually worse than they sound. And Dad was definitely going to lose his shit once he sees Bella. If he had his way, he will not let me come near her for a long time.

I continued cradling Bella in my arms while we waited for Dad. In exactly 5 mins, I heard a key turning into the front door and then Dad's voice calling out to me "Edward"

"Down here Dad, in the playroom" I replied back.

In an instant he was beside the bed in the playroom. Bella tried to turn back to hide her back side from him. I sighed – she was still trying to save me – and stopped her from hurting herself even more by rubbing the bruises against the bed sheet. "No love" I told her gently.

"Bella, sweetheart, let me look please" Dad asked her.

Reluctantly she turned around, still keeping a death grip on me.

I saw Dad's eyes widen with horror when he looked at her injuries.

"Damn it Edward" he exclaimed, "what have you done?" He was beyond furious as he yanked me out of the bed and out of Bella's arms in one shift motion. "Get out of this room immediately. Go to your study and wait for me there" When I did not make any move to leave Bella's side, he shook his head and roared "so help me God Edward, if you don't leave this instant, I'll take you to your own whipping bench right away and proceed to show you what I meant on the phone, even before I tend to Bella's injuries. And believe me boy, it will take me hours to do what I really want to do with you."

I remained rooted at the same stop. There was no way I was leaving my Bella in this condition.