Purr (3 page)

In stronger light, the kitten was even more beautiful. Her
brown hair cascaded over her shoulders, the ends curling provocatively around
one dusky nipple. Her gaze lifted and found Arabella’s.

Something akin to desire trilled through Arabella’s veins,
causing her stomach to knot and her clitoris to throb with the memory of her
illicit activities.

An innocent smile that seemed terribly incongruous with the
display from yesterday played on the kitten’s lips.

“In the morning,” Eva explained, dragging her attention away
from Giselle, “each kitten receives a sponge bath and an enema if needed and
then a thorough oiling.”

“What’s the purpose of an enema?” she asked, surprised to
find herself aroused by the thought of such a thing.

“It makes the tail more tolerable. They must be worn until
the komtesse releases the kittens. Sometimes for hours.” Eva dipped a cloth in
a bowl of water she’d previously prepared and then wiped the kitten’s face
clean before proceeding to the rest of the woman’s voluptuous body.

Arabella could only imagine being allowed to touch such
beauty as she watched Eva gently smooth the cloth over every curve, every
swell, every flat plane. The kitten spread her knees wider as Eva paid extra
attention to the folds between the woman’s legs.

When she finished, Eva massaged fragrant oil into the
kitten’s skin, then brushed her long blonde locks before slipping on a
headpiece that gave her the appearance of having gray cat ears. Matching
mittens added to the ensemble. Each mitten had been fashioned out of the same
fur as the ears and reached just over the kitten’s elbows. Similar fur
coverings were put on each leg and fastened like stockings above the knee.

Arabella could not help but observe all the other kittens
being trussed up in their furry finery. And when it came time to don the tails,
each kitten perched on the table, ass high, head down, knees apart. Dampness
gathered between Arabella’s thighs as she watched Eva coat her fingers with
some sort of greasy substance, which she then slathered on the kitten’s
puckered rosette.

Arabella’s mouth went dry as Eva wriggled a finger into the
little hole. Other assistants behaved similarly, eliciting moans and sensuous
hip shaking from some of the kittens. Eva added a second finger and worked the
pair in a slow motion in and out, stretching the aperture to prepare it for the
tail dowel.

Whenever an assistant removed her fingers, a groan arose,
indicating the kittens didn’t want the sensual prodding to stop. Others sighed
in pleasure as their dowels were inserted.

One kitten dropped to her side, squeezed her thighs together
and began rocking her hips, obviously striving for a quick orgasm.

Helga appeared and smacked the kitten’s bottom with a black
leather strap. “Marta! Stop that at once. Do you want the komtesse to punish
you?”

Marta cast Helga a surly look marked with the hint of an
impish smile. “You know I enjoy the komtesse’s attentions. Negative or
otherwise.”

Helga snorted but could not quell a grin. “Not on this day.
Today belongs to Petra.”

When they were all clad in their kitten costumes, they
climbed off the tables and sauntered out the door, presumably to convene in the
den.

Once more, Arabella’s attention was drawn to Giselle,
resplendent in her black ears and tail, her full breasts bobbing enticingly as
she padded toward the door. Their gazes met again and Giselle quickly looked
away. Lightning fired through Arabella’s limbs, settling deep in her belly.
She’d never felt such a marked attraction before and the desire to know the
comely kitten better filled her with anticipation.

“Are the kittens assigned to a particular attendant?” she
asked Eva.

Eva shrugged. “The kittens tend to gravitate toward
attendants they like and everyone falls into a comfortable pattern…until a
kitten is banished or leaves.”

“Do many get banished?”

“I’ve seen it happen a few times since my arrival four years
ago,” Eva said as she began to clean her station.

“And what about leaving? How does one choose to leave this
place?”

Eva’s gaze suddenly seemed oddly hollow, as if something
haunted her. “None of us know, since anyone who leaves is not permitted to
return.”

“That’s odd.”

“It’s best you don’t bring it up. The komtesse would not
approve,” Eva whispered.

Arabella picked up the basin of water and followed Eva
toward the drain where the excess was dumped. “Would she punish me?” Arabella
joked.

Eva stopped, her gaze flashing toward Helga then back again.
“Do not speak of it.”

“But—” Arabella began, recalling the playful look in the
kitten’s eyes when Helga smacked her with the strap.

Eva seized her arm and squeezed with a force that surprised
Arabella. “Do not anger the komtesse. In fact, it’s best you don’t attract her
attention at all.” Her voice was but a hot whisper that left Arabella confused.

“Now come,” Eva said. “We are to watch Petra’s initiation.”

After packing away all the accouterments from their
stations, Arabella walked alongside Eva to the den. The fragrance of incense
wafted from the room. Inside, everything had been transformed for the
initiation. The throne had been removed from the dais and a table similar to
the one in the preparation room had been put in its place. This table sat lower
to the ground and Arabella noted a pair of silver manacles attached to the
sides. Would Petra have to be restrained?

The kittens all lounged on fur rugs and big throw pillows
while the komtesse entered and sat in her chair, which had been positioned off
to the side but maintained a premier view of the stage.

The servants and assistants stood in the back of the room,
all talking amongst themselves until a robed Petra emerged from a chamber
flanking the den and ascended the dais.

A hush fell over the assembly as the komtesse began to
speak. “Do you, Petra, present yourself to be initiated into the kitten den of
your own free will?”

“Yes, my Mistress.”

Even from here, Arabella detected the apprehension in
Petra’s eyes.

“Do you agree to abide by the rules laid out for you? You
will not consort with any kitten whilst away from the den. You will not consort
with any kitten without my express, spoken consent. You will not kiss another
inhabitant of Katzenhalle on the mouth. Neither will you enlist the servants or
assistants to give you release. Do you pledge your loyalty to Katzenhalle and
to the other denmates?”

“I do.” Petra’s voice wavered.

“Do you pledge your fealty to me?”

“I do, my Mistress.”

The komtesse clapped her hands once. “Begin with the
initiation!”

Two women wearing black leather cat masks that covered the
tops of their heads and half their faces stepped out of the shadows. Catlike
eye openings had been cut into the masks and pointed ears stood up on top.
Leather straps made up what little clothing they wore, with studded strips
crisscrossing between their bare breasts and between their legs. They, too, had
been fitted with tails, though theirs were fashioned of leather and hung past
their knees, branching into wicked-looking plaited thongs at the ends.

Petra trembled as the catwomen removed her robe and laid it
aside. She gnawed her bottom lip as she turned and bent, positioning her hands
on the low table.

“What are they doing to her?” Arabella asked, unable to look
away from the sight of Petra’s upturned bottom.

“First she’ll receive a spanking,” Eva whispered.

“A spanking? For what transgression?”

“Don’t worry. It’s a light one, but a precursor to what she
would be dealt if she were to displease the komtesse.”

Still, the idea of submitting to such treatment in front of
all these people both horrified and titillated Arabella.

Silently, one of the catwomen took up a leather strap and
stood to Petra’s side. Petra flinched when the first blow struck. She emitted a
rough breath and braced herself as a second and third swat landed, striping her
pale cheeks red. Two more ended the oddly provocative ordeal and both catwomen
made a show of petting and massaging the offended flesh. Arabella guessed
similar such treatment would follow.

A glimmer of dampness glistened on Petra’s opening. From
where Arabella stood, the spanking looked far more arousing than punishing.

“Now she will submit to the purification,” Eva said.

One of the women brought forth a tall stand on which hung a
weighty-looking bag with a tube attached to it.

An enema? Right here for all to see?
Arabella’s
breath hitched as one of the women coated Petra’s rosette with greasy lubricant
and the other inserted the nozzle, which disappeared with ease inside her.

The muscles in the backs of Petra’s legs corded and tensed.
And when the catwoman released a clamp on the water tube, Petra whimpered
helplessly. The ordeal seemed unending as the bag slowly emptied. She
alternately squeezed her thighs together and bucked her hips, as if her body
both relinquished control and struggled against the unwelcome invasion and
unexpected pleasure. Any humility she might have previously possessed vanished
as she groaned.

A droplet of water trickled down one inner thigh as her
buttocks squeezed taut then relaxed, only to tighten again.

“Give her release,” the komtesse said blandly.

One of the catwomen reached between Petra’s legs and began
to stroke her clitoris until Petra shook and moaned.

Arabella stared. Had Petra really found sexual satisfaction
in the act of taking and holding all that water while everyone watched?
Arabella found herself questioning her desire to join the ranks of the kittens.
No wonder Petra had been afraid.

Finally, one of the women eased the nozzle out and permitted
Petra to scurry off the dais and back into the antechamber, where Arabella
presumed she’d release all the water that had been forced into her bum.

“Is it over?” she asked Eva.

“Hardly,” Eva said. “Now we wait until she comes back then
the women will take her virginity.”

Arabella’s eyes widened. “How can a woman take another
woman’s virginity?”

Eva snickered. “You’ll see.”

Mind awash with possibilities, Arabella glanced at Giselle,
who sat alone on a fur rug until the komtesse motioned with her fingers for the
kitten to come.

Giselle crawled across the floor and dutifully nuzzled her
face between the komtesse’s splayed legs. Arabella watched, imagining that the
brown-haired beauty tasted
her
instead of the komtesse.

Gripping the armrests of her chair, the komtesse shuddered
then relaxed as Giselle sat back to await praise. With a languid smile, the
komtesse leaned forward to stroke Giselle’s face. “On your feet, precious
kitty.”

After standing, Giselle stepped closer for the komtesse to
suckle one of her pert nipples into her mouth. Arabella’s clit jolted when
Giselle’s gaze found her own. Still staring, the brunette inched her legs apart
to admit the komtesse’s fingers.

Desire raged through Arabella. Her face and the back of her
neck flamed hot. Perspiration beaded and trickled down her spine. She should
look away. She should not witness something that should be so intensely
intimate but she couldn’t tear her gaze from Giselle’s bold stare.

Still nude, Petra stepped out of the chamber, breaking the
spell as the komtesse pushed Giselle away and dismissed the kitten with a wave
of her jewel-bedecked hand.

Clearly unsatisfied, Giselle returned to her spot on the fur
rug.

Arabella turned to Eva. “Does the komtesse do that often?”
she asked, disappointed for the kitten.

“Do what?”

“Tease them,” Arabella said for lack of a better
description.

“The komtesse always finds her pleasure. If the kittens
achieve orgasm, it is because the komtesse deems it fit.”

How unfair.
Arabella inhaled, trying in vain to
stifle her need to comfort Giselle.

“I wish I were Petra right now,” Eva said, drawing
Arabella’s attention to the dais, where a very frightened-looking Petra
positioned herself on the table on her hands and knees.

The masked women returned, one wearing an apparatus that
caused Arabella to gasp aloud. The device looked exactly like a man’s erect
cock fashioned out of black leather. The catwoman wore it strapped around her
hips with the phallus jutting indecently for all to see.

“Is she going to—” Arabella began, but Eva interrupted,
obviously excited about this part of the initiation.

“Yes. She’s going to fuck her with it.”

Chapter Three

Arabella gulped. She shouldn’t have been shocked by the word
as much as by what transpired on the dais before her very eyes, but she was.

“Won’t it hurt her?”

“Silly goose. That’s the point. The komtesse wants her
kittens to be playthings and you can hardly enjoy her fingers rutting in your
cunny if you’re a virgin.”

Inwardly, Arabella shrank. Katzenhalle provided so many
freedoms but so many other things that she found scandalous. No wonder Petra
had been afraid.

“Besides,” Eva continued, “there will be so much pleasure to
follow.”

Flaunting the phallus, the catwoman stepped in behind Petra
and raked the lubricated tip through her folds. But rather than prod Petra, the
catwoman merely waited for her to inch backward, thus taking the cock into her
passage of her own free will.

Petra let out a whimper and pushed back all at once. A
raucous cheer rose in the den as the masked woman withdrew and turned toward
the audience. From here, Arabella could not see the virginal blood on the
phallus, and she was glad of it.

But just when Arabella thought the tribulation was over, the
other catwoman, also brandishing a leather cock, stepped up behind Petra. Even
from her position in the back of the den, Arabella could see the greasy
lubricant gleaming on the black leather.

“Now her bottom will be prepared to receive a tail,” Eva
said, craning to see better.

Arabella’s lips parted in a mixture of dread and desire as
the catwoman rubbed the tip of the greased phallus on Petra’s rosette. Her legs
and arms trembled as she readied herself for the intimate invasion. When the
cock pressed closer, Petra lifted her bottom almost imperceptibly and the end
of the thick shaft slipped past the rim.

Arabella’s anus tightened at the thought of taking something
that big inside her there. Surprisingly, she didn’t deplore the idea but rather
found it intriguing. A drop of her own juices oozed down her inner thigh and
she too found herself stretching to watch the phallus slowly penetrate Petra’s
ass.

Petra shook as the thing eased all the way inside her. This
time the cock wasn’t immediately removed but instead, the masked woman gripped
Petra’s buttocks and began to rock her hips, delivering slow, short thrusts.

Deep moans spilled from Petra’s parted lips. She met the
thrusts, urging her teasing tormentor to increase the speed and depth. The
catwoman braced a hand on Petra’s back and moved faster and harder, slapping
her groin against Petra’s backside over and over until the initiate threw back
her head and released a strangled cry of pleasure that caused Arabella’s loins
to blaze with need.

The catwoman withdrew the phallus, took a cloth and gently
cleaned Petra before she was coaxed to lie on the table and submit her wrists
to be shackled.

“Here’s where Petra’s real fun starts,” Eva said.

The komtesse clapped her hands twice and one of the kittens
ascended the dais and buried her face between Petra’s legs. Moments later,
Petra gasped as pleasure overcame her again.

Another kitten followed.

“Does each kitten get a go at her?” Arabella asked, her own
voice hoarse with arousal.

Eva nodded. “Lucky bitch.”

But Arabella’s attention shifted from Petra to Giselle, who
had crept back to the komtesse to brush her face against the aristocrat’s legs.

“Naughty, salacious kitten,” the komtesse crooned as she
gestured for Giselle to bend over her lap. “You know what this means?”

Giselle nodded and pushed up on the tiptoes of her fur-clad
feet.

The komtesse lifted the tail high, tugging enough to remind
her charge just where the device was seated. Giselle bit her bottom lip.

Arabella’s mouth went dry at the sight of the soft, moist
folds displayed before her. What would it be like to trace her tongue along
that juicy slit? The komtesse roughly caressed then smacked Giselle’s bottom
several times, leaving behind the blush of handprints that must have inspired
the most sensual burn.

“Step up. I want to taste you,” the komtesse uttered
huskily.

Dutifully, Giselle climbed up, bracing one foot on the
armrest and the other on the back of the chair. The komtesse leaned forward to
lick between the kitten’s thighs. Giselle rolled her hips with a slow
sensuality that made Arabella’s mouth water. And when the kitten’s gaze clashed
with Arabella’s again, her knees went weak.

“You were warned about consorting with the kittens, weren’t
you?” Eva asked softly, obviously taking notice.

Arabella tore her gaze from Giselle’s. “Yes, of course.”

“Temptation is thick at Katzenhalle. Be careful,” Eva
cautioned before she moved to get a better view of the happenings on the dais.

As well as pleasuring Petra, the kittens had obviously
earned the privilege of pleasing one another. Throughout the room, women lay
with legs sprawled, getting devoured by fellow kittens. Some managed to taste
each other at the same time and still others lined up to be prodded by the
masked catwomen.

Arabella doubted she’d ever become accustomed to such
carnality. She glanced toward the door and wondered if she could withdraw
without detection. The need to touch herself reared so great she didn’t think
she could stand it much longer.

“Dear, you look peaked,” one of the other attendants
whispered.

Arabella fanned her face with her hand.

The woman smiled. “It can be a bit overwhelming. Usually by
this time, no one notices if you step out into the hallway for air. Just don’t
be gone too long.”

Arabella nodded and eased her way to the door. Once out of
the den, she leaned against the wall and breathed in the fresh air. The
fragrance of sex and sweet cunny lingered in her nostrils and she shook her
head as if she could dispel the erotic memory of naked bodies entwined, of
plaintive moans and faces contorted in the throes of pleasure.

No one else was about. She could wait no longer. She plunged
her hand under her skirts and there, leaning against the wall, she rubbed
herself, intent on finding quick release. Images of ivory thighs opening to
reveal succulent treasures within haunted Arabella.

Her crease was already slippery and her fingertips glided
over her swollen clitoris with ease. She squeezed her legs together and bucked
against her hand. Pleasure hovered near. Almost…

A gasp startled Arabella and she jolted, snatching her hand
away from the apex of her thighs and letting her skirts flutter back down. She
blinked furiously, face flaming with shame—until her eyes focused on Giselle,
who looked almost as frightened at the sight of an unexpected person.

Up close, Arabella could see that Giselle’s eyes were a
deep, almost brown shade of hazel. A smattering of faint freckles dusted her
nose and cheeks. Full lips parted in surprise that didn’t reach those doe eyes.
No. Something else dark and forbidden lurked in her gaze. Something akin to a
shared secret.

“Forgive me,” she said breathlessly, her voice tinged with
the hint of a French accent. “I didn’t know anyone was here.”

Unable to form words, Arabella stared.

Giselle’s chin tilted downward and she gazed from underneath
a wealth of dark lashes. “I’m lying. I-I saw you leave the den.”

Arabella struggled to keep from ogling the lush pair of full
breasts or the alluring vee of dark curls just beyond her reach. She trembled,
uncertain of how to react.

Giselle’s gaze lifted, penetrating Arabella’s. “I also saw
you watching me with the komtesse,” the kitten said softly.

Apprehension prickled up and down Arabella’s spine. Just
conversing with Giselle outside the den might warrant punishment for them both.
The thoughts Arabella was having about the voluptuous kitten would most
certainly
garner the komtesse’s wrath.

“I’ve never been exposed to anything like this before,”
Arabella said, trying to appear nonchalant.

Holding her gaze, Giselle stepped closer. Arabella’s breath
froze as the kitten guided her hand up with black-mittened paws and teasingly
sucked the fingers with which Arabella had recently pleasured herself.

Her stomach somersaulted. Every nerve in her body seized
taut and she thought she would swoon from the shock of the sensation of the
kitten’s soft tongue rolling around her fingers. Arabella could not force
herself to move. Could not withdraw her fingers. Nor did she want to.

Instead, she stared into those hazel eyes with their flecks
of gold, wishing she could experience more with this forbidden beauty. A
devilish smile played on Giselle’s lips before she whirled away and, black tail
swishing behind her, disappeared back into the den.

Arabella stared at the spot where the kitten had stood,
wondering if she’d only just imagined the entire exchange. Her damp fingers
told her otherwise.

Once again, she leaned against the wall. She closed her eyes
and sighed. Staying out of trouble on her uncle’s estate was hard enough. At
Katzenhalle, behaving would be all but impossible.

* * * * *

Giselle slipped back into the den unnoticed. The komtesse
had busied herself by strapping on one of the phalluses and bending one of the
kittens over to give her a thorough fucking.

Relief swept through Giselle that she had not been missed.
Hopefully the komtesse would soon tire of her and allow her the freedoms the
other kittens experienced. The komtesse’s appetites were great, and even when
time in the den ended for the day, she often summoned Giselle to her chambers
to continue.

Even given the dubious circumstances under which she’d been
brought to Katzenhalle, at first Giselle had enjoyed the lavish, hedonistic
lifestyle being the komtesse’s favorite entailed. But now it seemed like a
prison.

A prison from which Giselle hoped the new assistant could liberate
her. Running away would be all but impossible without help and when she’d heard
the new girl hailed from the nearby town of Salzburg, Giselle had grown
optimistic. Knowledge of the town would be required to make good an escape and,
once she was back on French soil, she could return to her home and tell her
father what her stepmother had done.

Lies had been told. Henchmen had been paid. And Giselle had
been brought to Katzenhalle against her will.

Of course, none of the others believed she hadn’t arrived
with a penchant for Sapphism. But before being brought here, Giselle had
imagined marrying an aristocrat, managing an estate and producing heirs.

Instead she’d been delivered into a life of utter
debauchery, where she had no choice but to abide by the komtesse’s will.

All were told they had the freedom to deny her or even to
leave Katzenhalle if they so wished. But Giselle knew that was far from the
truth. Those who left departed in coffins. She’d learned too much during her
nights in the komtesse’s chamber.

“Ah, Giselle,” the komtesse called, having released the
other kitten. She stood, hands on her hips, creating an odd silhouette in her
beribboned stays and stockings with the faux cock protruding arrogantly from
its harness. She rubbed the phallus suggestively. “Come, sweet kitten.”

Obediently, Giselle padded across the den, her senses
assaulted by the movement of the thick dowel snuggled in her bottom. She bent
and braced her paws on the armrests of the komtesse’s chair. Fingers raked
through her slit before she felt the tip of the cock nudge her opening. She bit
her bottom lip as the leather slid inside, awakening the delicate tissue
within. Her lashes fluttered closed.

Why did it have to feel so good? Guilt welled that her body
betrayed her so easily.

Visions of the lovely raven-haired assistant formed in her
head, surprising Giselle. She’d never fantasized about any of the women here,
but now she imagined the black-haired newcomer behind her, thrusting the
phallus in and out of her channel.

How could she grow so desirous for another woman’s touch,
for such sinful sexual practices? But she did. Time and time again she gave
over to the lust and need for physical release.

Perhaps the visions in her head lay in the fact she planned
to use the new attendant to help her escape Katzenhalle.

The komtesse tugged gently on Giselle’s tail, igniting the
nerve endings in that orifice until her muscles clenched around both invasions.
Insidious pleasure coursed through her. She deserved the komtesse’s
punishments. The spankings, having leather and wooden dildos stuffed into her
bottom, being tied and ridden to hell and back by the komtesse. All of it and
more. Yes, she deserved it, even welcomed it on some dark level.

It was as if she had no control over her body or desires,
and it was that very loss of control that fueled her unspoken demand to be
free.

Giselle’s thighs trembled as her focus swirled around the
cock deep inside her cunny. Her head dropped and as she ignored the komtesse’s
soft laughter, bliss built and built and then crashed. Giselle cried out,
clawing the armrests with her
paws
until the komtesse milked the last
tendril of ecstasy from her sex-ravaged body.

Spent, Giselle wilted to the floor, sagging over the chair
to lay her cheek against the cushion. The komtesse bent over her and brushed
her lips along the shell of her ear. “Later, my precious pet,” she said, and
patted Giselle on the head. “Later.”

* * * * *

Arabella mingled with the other assistants as they filtered
out of the den and made their way back to the preparation room to undress the
kittens.

“What happened to you?” Eva asked.

Arabella shrugged. “Nothing.” She quickly changed the
subject. “What happens now?”

“We bathe the kittens and then join the other servants in
the dining hall.”

“And the komtesse?”

“She retires to her rooms.” Eva’s eyes sparkled
mischievously. “She usually takes her favorite with her. Most often it’s the
newest kitten. No one holds the komtesse’s attention for long.”