A/N: Warning. From here on out, there will be occasional mentions and depictions of self-harm. Not in every chapter, but please read with caution; I will try to remember to put a warning on each chapter containing such material. Also a note, in real life you can not dominate someone out of self-harming using D/s or BDSM, if you struggle with this please seek professional help from a licensed therapist.
"Mercy! Mercy!" Grace squealed, her face red and her hair disheveled as her Mistress attacked her belly and sides with tickles.
"Are you going to give it to me?" Olivia asked, gently rubbing Grace's belly.
"I don't have it. No, no more!" Grace squealed as Olivia continued to tickle her.
"I should spank you for lying to me and cheating. I know you have it; it doesn't have legs, it didn't just get up and wander away. Where is the blue piece?" Olivia asked again, referring to the board game currently spread out on the floor.
"This is blackmail!" Grace squealed.
"No, this is what happens to little girls who cheat at board games. Where is the blue piece? I know you took it while I was on the phone. Tell me now, or those cute little feet of yours are mine." Olivia threatened.
"No! Okay, okay! I'll tell you, just stop!" Grace pleaded.
"Oh, I'm afraid that's not how this works, my baby. First you tell me, and then I will stop." Olivia informed her.
"It's in my right pocket!" Grace finally gave in.
True to her word, Olivia stopped tickling Grace and reached into her right pocket to retrieve its contents.
"There, that's better. It's my turn now." Olivia placed the blue piece back on the board where it belonged, rolled the dice, and grinned triumphantly as she moved the blue piece to the finish line, "I win."
From her place on the floor in an exhausted puddle, Grace groaned in defeat as she panted for breath. The young brunette slowly sat up and stuck her tongue out at her Mistress before jumping up to her feet and taking off running with Olivia hot on her heels.
"OUCH!" Grace yelped in pain when Olivia finally managed to grab hold of her wrist, which made Olivia immediately pause their playful interaction.
"Did I hurt you, sweetheart?" Olivia asked with loving concern.
"Uh… only a little, Ma'am. I accidentally cut my wrist yesterday while I was chopping tomatoes. I'm okay." Grace explained.
"Let me see your wrist." Olivia ordered.
Grace was reluctant to obey, but knew better than to disobey, so she showed Olivia her wrist. Olivia was relieved to find that, while Grace's wrist was indeed cut, it was not a deep cut that required medical attention, and it seemed that Grace had already thought to doctor it with the ointment that was leftover from the scars on her back and the bruises on her wrists.
"Poor baby." Olivia gently kissed Grace's wrist, "You need to be more careful in the kitchen from now on. I don't want you to get hurt."
"Yes, Ma'am, I'll be careful." Grace agreed, pulling her sleeve down over her wrist.
"That's my good girl. Now, I have paperwork that won't do itself. You find something to stay out of trouble with, or we will be having a discussion over my knee about cheating." Olivia glared playfully.
"Yes, Ma'am." Grace smiled.
A few days later, Grace was in the shower shaving her legs and accidentally nicked herself. Much as she had done when she cut her wrist, she winced in pain at first, and then relaxed as she received a wave of endorphins, watching as the blood dripped from the wound like a teardrop and was washed away by the spray from the shower, and the slightly tinted water disappeared down the drain. This pain was a different kind of pain than the pain of a spanking; this pain made her feel empowered and in control, rather than remorseful and repentant. Olivia was still watching her like a hawk at meal times and she knew that she would be spanked if she refused to eat, but this she could control. It was her own hand that decided when, where, and how hard to press. Olivia had taken Grace back to the shooting range the day before for another practice session, and Grace had imagined that the target was Dr. Lindstrom's face, but even that had given her no sense of power or control. Dr. Olivet was helping, but Dr. Olivet couldn't give Grace her sense of power back, Grace would have to take it back herself. The blade of the razor in Grace's hand was completely in her power.
The next day, Carisi rolled his eyes as he stood in Liz Donnelly's courtroom listening to Trevor Langan defend his client while Dr. Lindstrom sat beside him in handcuffs.
"Your Honor, my client has been highly respected in his profession and in the community at large for over twenty five years, and the alleged victim has already been through one trial in this courtroom. Let's spare everyone the stress, the defense strongly suggests that my client be released and all charges dropped."
"Not a chance, Mr. Langan. Your Honor, it is true that the victim has been through a trial in this courtroom already, but she has already been through a rape kit and she has just as much right to face her attacker as anybody else." Carisi said.
"I agree. Charges will not be dropped, and Dr. Lindstrom will remain in custody until his trial date." Liz banged her gavel.
Meanwhile, Lisa Vaughn laid on her couch icing her sprained ankle, mindlessly flipping through the channels on the TV and allowing herself to indulge in a bag of pretzels. She could hear her submissive girlfriend, Allison McCune, humming and moving about in the kitchen and she smiled to herself, instinctively knowing that Allison most likely was wearing earbuds and dancing along to whatever music she was listening to while she was cooking.
"How's your ankle feeling, babe?" Allison called out from the kitchen.
"Better. I still can't believe I tripped over the damn cat." Lisa replied, glaring over at Charlie who just blinked at her innocently and then began licking her paw and cleaning her face without a care in the world.
"I'm sure she didn't appreciate it either. Hey, do you want cheese on your baked potato?"
"Sure."
A short time later, Allison emerged from the kitchen carrying two trays of food so they could enjoy their meal in front of the TV. Lisa had settled on a news channel, and the injured blonde woman was startled when suddenly there was a loud crash as Allison dropped both trays to the floor, and Charlie darted down the hall to hide under the bed. Allison dropped to her knees, her dark eyes as wide as saucers and her pretty face pale as a ghost as she watched what was happening on the screen. A therapist from Manhattan was being held on charges of rape.
"He raped me." Allison choked out, visibly shaking. Lisa got up from the couch and limped over to tend to her frightened submissive. Both women were unaware that not too far away, other women were experiencing similar reactions.
Mariana Perez walked into her apartment and bent down to take the leash off of her dog's collar, and then went to the kitchen to give the dog a fresh bowl of water after their long walk. Her cell phone buzzed in her pocket and she reached inside to retrieve the device.
"Hola, Mami." Mariana greeted when she saw that her mother was calling her.
"Hola, mi querida. Are you at home?"
"Si, I just got back from walking Lola."
"Turn on your TV to the news."
Puzzled, Mariana walked over and turned on her TV. She froze in shock when she saw the picture of the man on the screen and dropped to her knees.
"Mi hija, I am so, so sorry Papi and I didn't believe you…"
Mariana looked up when her Mistress, Lucia, walked into the room. Lucia started to smile until she saw the troubled look in her sweet little submissive's eyes.
"Captain, we just got another call. Another woman who claims that she was raped by Dr. Lindstrom." Amanda Rollins hung up the phone at her desk.
"Good God, how many women does that make? Five?" Olivia mused.
"Six." Elliot hung up the phone on his own desk and held up his pad of paper.
Ainsley O'Sullivan reached up to her throat and gripped the crucifix around her neck with one hand, while with the other she hung up the phone after speaking with someone named Detective Stabler at the Special Victims Unit. She turned back to the TV and stared at the familiar image on the screen; that was one face she would never forget as long as she lived, she could hardly believe that he had finally been caught. She was startled when a pair of arms suddenly wrapped around her and someone kissed her neck. The red-haired woman whirled around to be greeted by the confused eyes of her Master, Ryan, and she broke down sobbing in his arms.
The next day, Grace's behavior deteriorated to the point that Olivia informed her that she would be on obedience training until further notice. Much to the young submissive's dismay, she earned three sessions with the wooden spoon, for a total of fifteen swats, just within the first twenty four hours. Grace was still feeling insecure and therefore felt the need to test the waters of her household at most every turn, and she was finding that the waters were consistently very hot, if not downright painful at times, but she was slowly re-learning what was expected of her and what she could and couldn't get away with. Olivia was still lovingly in charge.
"I think you've been cooped up in this apartment for too long, little miss mischief. Put your shoes on, we're going out." Olivia decided.
"Yes, Ma'am." Grace turned to do as she was told the first time, wanting to avoid yet another five licks of the wooden spoon if she disobeyed.
Olivia made a phone call, loaded Grace into the car, and drove downtown. Aside from her appointments to see Dr. Olivet, Grace hadn't left the apartment and cabin fever was obviously getting the best of her behavior. Grace was confused when they pulled into the parking lot in front of a building that she had never seen before. Olivia parked and led her inside. Grace was confused as she followed Olivia through a series of hallways. They walked through a pair of double doors and Grace was both surprised and confused to be greeted by Kat Tamin, who had obviously been waiting for them.
"Thanks for meeting us, Kat." Olivia spoke, setting her bag down on the bleachers.
"Of course, Captain. If there's anything I can do to help, I'm always willing." Kat replied.
"What's going on, Ma'am?" Grace asked.
"Kat is going to teach you how to box." Olivia informed her.
"It's a great way to get out pent up energy, and it teaches you self-control." Kat chimed in, "Let's start with some stretching to warm up your muscles so you don't get hurt."
Realizing that she didn't have much choice, Grace did as she was told and got into the boxing ring with Kat, and they began to stretch. By the time they were done with their boxing session, Grace was exhausted, but she felt proud of herself as both Olivia and Kat praised her.
"You've got to keep working on your left hook, and remember to keep both hands up, but you did really well for your first time." Kat smiled.
Grace was too exhausted that night to even consider arguing about bedtime. The young brunette obediently crawled into her place on the bed, made herself comfortable, and was out like a light in less than five minutes. She had to admit that it felt good to be so tired. It meant that just maybe she would be able to sleep through the night without having a nightmare.
It was not to be. In the middle of the night, Olivia was awakened by a blood-curdling scream from the end of the bed and the brunette detective rushed to comfort her distraught baby.
"I'm here, my baby. I'm right here. Good girl. It was just a dream, baby, you're safe. I promise you're safe right here with me." Olivia soothed lovingly.