Suddenly feeling nauseous, she scraped the rest of her food into the garbage, rinsed the plates and stacked them into the dishwasher. Grabbing her coke, she followed the sound of voices into the living room.

"Hey Nat," Jon greeted her with a warm hug, "Are you okay? Shit he hit you, didn't he? Oh, this is," he turned to the taller man, "this is one of our lawyers, Glenn Singleton. Glenn, this is Natalie Brockman."

Glenn was a tall man with dark hair, a well-built body encased in a button down dress shirt and slacks. He held out his hand with a very professional, "Good evening, Ms. Brockman. It's a pleasure to meet you. I've heard quite a bit about you from Mr. Bongiovi."

"All good I hope," Natalie joked lamely.

Both men smiled kindly at her. Jon turned to Richie leaving Glenn and Natalie to get acquainted and get some of the formalities out of the way, "Lemme look at you, big guy?" He reached out to touch Richie's darkening and swollen eye.

"I'm okay, Jonny," he said, "Nurse Bongiovi can visit me later. Right now it's about Nat."

Jon nodded but the scowl lines between his eyes didn't lessen any. "How bad was he?" he asked.

"Out of control," Richie answered, "Lexi didn't help any. I'm convinced she's brainwashing him, but...fuck...he called when I was driving Nat over here. Threatening her and she said he was...getting off on it."

"So mentally he finally broke," Jon said matter of factly. "I knew it was in the cards but never thought it would actually come to this."

"I mean," Richie said, "David and I have slogged it out before, but the look in his eyes this time was something I've not seen before, ya know?"

"I do," Jon nodded, "Psychotic. Got a wine in your house anywhere? I think we're gonna need it."

Richie nodded and pushed Jon toward the living room as he headed down the hallway to his cellar room. He returned with a couple of bottles of Jon's favorite wine, leaving one in the kitchen fridge and grabbing glasses before joining the rest.

"Gentlemen, if we can get started," Glenn called out and walked with Natalie into the lounge. He sat across from the young woman, organizing his paperwork across his lap and the coffee table.

Richie poured two more glasses after Glenn shook his head when offered a glass, handing one to Jon and placing the other in front of Natalie.

Richie sat down next to Natalie and took her hand in his while Jon took the chair next to Glenn. "It's okay, darlin'," he whispered, "I'm right here. So is Jon. We're in your corner."

Glenn pressed record on a phone app and smiled up at Natalie. "October 16, 2011. Time is 2:34 am," Glenn stated, "Meeting with Natalie Brockman, witnesses present Richard Sambora and Jon Bongiovi...and just to confirm, this is about Mr. David Bryan of Colts Neck, correct?"

"That's correct," Natalie answered.

Glenn nodded and asked, "First thing's first, do you have anything you'd like to submit against Mr. Bryan?"

"I have Contract of Ownership and employment contract that I need formally terminated," she stated and handed both documents to the lawyer, her eyes flitting to Richie.

"And if I'm correct in understanding," Glenn said, flipping through the binder's contents, "You willingly signed this? I mean to say, Mr. Bryan didn't force you or forge your signature in any way?"

"Correct," Natalie whimpered. "Earlier he handed me the employment folder with this check," she held it up, "with a termination notice for my employment." Richie squeezed her hand in comfort.

Glenn tapped the BDSM contract with his finger and looked up from reading, "And Mr. Bryan never stated he was terminating this contract as well?"

Natalie shook her head, willing her emotions to remain under control. "No, he didn't even give it to me. I took it from his desk."

"So it was taken without his knowledge?" Glenn asked as he jotted down notes for his file.

"Correct but I had knowledge where it was. It was something we agreed on. I grabbed it before I left," Natalie shrugged then felt her hands shake, "I was fearing for my life...he-he raped me..."

"Motherfucker," Jon swore with a scowl, taking a hefty swallow of wine.

"When was this?"

Natalie looked up at Richie and sniffled, "Shortly before I called Richie for help."

The three watched Glenn for several tense minutes as he read over the contract, highlighting portions and his jaw tightening. "The contract does say the submissive can terminate the contract but..."

"But what?" Richie asked as he slipped his arm around Nat's shoulders.

"It has to be witnessed by the Dominant," Glenn sighed.

"Fuck! Can it be done after the fact?" Jon asked in a rush, "Surely it's not a legal document? Just for some kinky sex!?"

Glenn thought for a moment before answering, "Any contract between two parties is legally binding. There might be a way around that. Ms. Brockman, would you be willing to make a video?"

"Video? Of what?"

"Writing a statement of termination, any clauses Mr. Bryan may have broken, reading it on a video recording and signing it. It's still taken as an official statement even if Mr. Bryan opposes it," Glenn explained.

Natalie laid her head on Richie and curled in. "I don't have to speak to him directly?"

"Since there is now documented injuries at his hand, no you don't," Glenn replied kindly. "He just has to be aware of its termination. I'll make a copy of the signed statement, video, and have it delivered with the restraining order."

"Yes...Yes I can do that. Will you be here?" Nat glanced up at Richie, her hands clutching his shirt.

Richie kissed Natalie's forehead and said, "The whole way through, darlin'. We both will." He looked over at Jon for support, who nodded in confirmation.

"There's one more thing..." Natalie held up the USB drive and frowned "...All the photos and videos we ever took are here."

"You're saying there is actual footage of everything he did to you?" Glenn's eyes widened in astonishment.

"Not everything but the...more violent stuff," Natalie hesitated. "Caning, whipping...dark roleplay...He'd record 'scenes' where he'd...fuck..." She buried her face into her hands.

Jon stood from where he was sitting and paced around the room. He hadn't cared for David's choice in lifestyle but had put up with it since he'd kept it within his marriage to Lexi, but there was no way he could stand for this when it reached beyond acceptable boundaries and involved an employee.

"Ms. Brockman, if it's easier to write down the contents, we can do that," Glenn said, "You've been through a lot tonight and I want to make this as easy as possible on you."

"When did you copy that?" Richie asked softly, astonished that Nat had the foresight to accomplish such a feat.

"Tonight," Natalie replied. "I have...had access to his computer where he kept them all. Deleted them from the hard drive after."

Richie huffed out a surprised breath, "Wow...you did all that while he and I were fighting?"

Natalie nodded and straightened up her head. "David said learning control was part of the...the training process. Keeping a cool head during chaotic times. If I failed during training...well...I learned that pain would follow any failures. The content is very...um...graphic and violent..."

Glenn shot Natalie a look and said, "We shouldn't need them seen just yet, but if it comes down to a court appearance they may be called into evidence." He handed Natalie a notepad and continued, "I want you to take your time and write down your full statement. Every detail you can."

"I'll get us some coffee and an ice pack," Richie sighed and gave Natalie a soft reassuring kiss.

"I'll help you. Nat, we're just in the kitchen, okay?" Jon had seen the two kiss before but it was different this time. He couldn't put his finger on it and knew it would be slightly inappropriate of a time to ask.

Natalie nodded and the lawyer stood as well, asking, "Actually, could I speak with you two alone?" Glenn followed the other two out of earshot as Nat set to work writing. "How well do you two know David and his financial backing?"

"About as well as we know our own, why?" Jon asked.

"I know his lawyer," Glenn admitted, "If this goes to court, his lawyer will shred her to pieces."

"So you're saying to get Natalie to agree to an out of court settlement?" Jon confirmed.

"I don't think she'd agree to go after him one way or the other," Glenn replied, "Even though he's hurt her, she may not want to hurt him back. He's taught her to not only respect but fear his authority. You see it a lot with people who take on the type of dynamic Natalie and David had."

"So what?! He just gets away with raping and slapping her around?" Richie shouted angrily.

Glen shook his head. "Do you know of anything that would show his malicious intent?"

Richie scrubbed his face the best he could, wincing when he hit a sore spot, but shook his head. He reached into the freezer for an ice pack and held it to his face. It was starting to throb badly.

"Oh wait!" he turned back to face Glenn, "He rang when we were in the car. I got Nat to record what he was saying on her phone, coz he was threatening her."

"Where's her phone now?" Jon asked.

"Dunno, man," Richie shrugged, "Ask Nat."

Jon rolled his eyes at his friend and rushed into the lounge. "Nat...baby...where's your phone?" Natalie looked up from her writing and handed Jon her phone. "Thanks, darlin'," he said and started flipping through it, rejoining Richie and Glenn. "Text messages...looks like she never deleted any...photos...videos...ahh recordings."

He pressed play on the most recent one and all three listened as David's voice came through, "She never asked me to stop before when I held a knife to her neck. I've held her life in the palm of my hand and not once did she resist. What makes you think I couldn't take it one step further?"

"He did what to her?!" Jon asked, appalled at his best friend and taking in the low rasp of a man who had entered an inhuman space of the mind.

"Tell him, my little whore...tell him how you enjoy being hurt...how you begged me to mark your skin and how you pleaded for more pain." Jon pressed STOP when a new message came through. He opened up the text from David that said, "I'm sorry, babygirl, come back home to your Daddy..."

"Go fuck yourself," Jon typed back. Soon after, photos of a knife in David's hand and Natalie restrained to the bed covered in welts, blood and bruises with the caption, 'My Little Prey' came through.

"Jesus fucking Christ," Jon breathed, "How can we get him help, Glenn? Can we force him into some kind of hospital? This isn't the David we know."

Glenn leaned against the counter and thought for a moment. "What is the David you know? If we can show that his behavior has shifted, then the courts can force him into a 72-hour hold with a psych evaluation."

"Would any of our interviews or videos help?" Richie asked, "Ahh I think the most recent is probably, what, a month old?" He looked to Jon for confirmation.

Jon's eyes were spaced out as he pulled up an old video on Natalie's phone. He wasn't listening to Richie as he hit play. David and Natalie were at one of his beach parties, dancing with each other and kissing happily. "This is my beautiful assistant," his voice came from the video, "My beautiful, gorgeous Natalie."

He dipped the giggling woman and kissed her. The video transitioned to them by a pool. Natalie was filming David and said, "So you never regret bringing me here, handsome?"

David gave her a wide, genuine smile, one that Jon and Richie were accustomed to. "Not once. You've been the light to what's been a dark and miserable marriage," he replied to her. The next frame showed the two kissing, taken from a selfie angle, and smiling up at each other.

"That's the David we know," Jon finally said, handing the phone over to Glenn.

"Right. So I'll need to take her phone for submission to the courts," Glenn said, "It will have all the information needed against David."

"...I finished..." Natalie's voice came from behind them. "Can...can I see that video again?"

Richie rushed over and embraced Natalie. "It's better if you don't, darlin'. Trust me on this." He led her back into the lounge, Jon and Glenn following.

Glenn set up his camera and tripod to record Natalie, positioning and giving her instructions on her speech and posture. "When you're ready..." He pressed record and the three men watched as she steadied herself.

Natalie took a deep breath and looked into the camera. "I, Natalie Brockman, formally and completely, with sound mind and judgment, terminate my Contract of Ownership and Employment Contract with David Bryan on October 16, 2011..."

Jon and Richie hugged each other as they listened to Natalie read her statement. "She's doing better than I thought," Richie whispered.

"Uh huh," Jon agreed softly, "Rich?"

"Yeah?"

"What's going on?" Jon asked, "Do I need to be concerned about us?"

Richie tilted his head towards Jon. "You never have to worry about us..."

"You seem to have something going on with Nat," Jon shrugged, "Just didn't know..."

"You have Dot, Jonny," Richie simply said, "I did ask her out though. Nat's a lovely woman and I won't deny that if Lema hadn't got there first.... But it'll always be you, baby."

Jon bit and twisted his lips. "I...guess I understand."

Richie took Jon's hand and pulled him into the next room away from prying eyes and out of range for the recording. Richie tilted Jon's face to his with his fingers and said, "Appearances matter for the moment, baby. We've gone over this before. You're my beginning and my end, but for the outside world, we need to keep up appearances, right?" He bent his head and kissed Jon as best as he could with his sore mouth.

"For the moment," Jon resigned. They shared one more kiss before returning to see Natalie had finished and was signing the statement.

Glenn started to gather up everything into his briefcase and gave a polite smile to Jon and Richie. "I'll start processing everything immediately and a sheriff will be at David's door by 6 am. Already have a judge on call to sign the restraining order."

"Thanks, Glenn," Jon said as they walked to the front door. He shook the man's hand, saying, "I owe you one. You'll be able to find your way out of the estate?"

"I'm not sure you'll be thanking me when you see the bill," he grinned, "but I'll be in touch."

Natalie watched Glenn leave and bowed her head, feeling like the awkward third wheel. "I can go for a walk if you two wanna be alone..."

"You don't have to go anywhere, darlin'," Richie said, "Is it that obvious, though?"

"A little," Natalie replied and shifted uncomfortably. "I didn't hear anything but I'm a good judge of body language."

"Ha," Richie scoffed, thinking of his conversation with Jon just now, "then you should know that we were just talking about keeping up appearances. Guess we're not doing such a great job, huh?"

Natalie shook her head and whispered, "Not at all."

"Not at all what?" Jon asked as he came back in, flopping on the couch beside Nat and scrubbed at his face tiredly.

"I'm just gonna go take a bath and then bed," Nat replied and rushed from the room before the situation got any more awkward. Richie sighed heavily and watched her retreating back.

"Did I say something wrong?" Jon looked bewildered.

Richie shook his head and sighed, "Nothing to worry about tonight, baby. Does Nurse Bongiovi want to tend my battle scars before he goes home to his wife?" He moved from his seat to sit next to Jon and curled up against him, losing themselves in each other before he had to reluctantly send Jon on his way back to Dorothea.

Richie killed the lights and wearily walked upstairs, jumping a little at the first sound of the storm overhead. He stripped out of his clothes and crawled into bed finally, not hearing anything as soon as his head hit the pillow.

*~*~*

Natalie was startled by the ear-piercing crack of thunder, each bolt of lightning illuminating her bedroom and casting shadows over the walls. She pulled the blanket tightly over her head, hoping to ride out the waves of anxiety.

Soon it became too much and she sat up, eyes darting around as Natalie reached for her robe, tightening the belt and softly padded across to the door. It slid open and gave way to the long hallway. She gasped as the thunder shook the house, her breathing becoming more labored.

She knocked on Richie's door. No answer. Natalie hesitantly turned the knob and pushed against the wood. It opened silently and she could see Richie sleeping soundly. She shuffled over the soft carpeting and shrugged out of her robe, hoping he wouldn't mind her in just a pair of black panties, and slipped under the comforter.

Richie grunted and rolled onto his back, remaining in his dreamless sleep. Natalie rested her head on the pillow and trailed her fingers down the center of his chest, rising and falling rhythmically. He was so calm and peaceful that she moved lower to his belly, playing with the fine hairs along his hot skin.

"Why couldn't it be like this with him?" She asked herself in a whisper. "I wanted what every girl does...a man to treat her like a princess and sweep her off her feet."

While lost her thoughts, she accidentally brushed the head of his dick and it twitched with the smallest bead of cum. She bought her fingers up and darted out her tongue to taste him.

Richie mumbled in his sleep, "Jonny..."

Natalie stilled momentarily, whispering, "No, it's me. Natalie."

"Nat? Everything ok, darlin'?" He asked sleepily, raising an arm for her and she snuggled into his side.

"I just need..." Her voice trailed off and she pressed her breasts into him. Richie understood when she started stroking him lovingly. "I don't wanna be alone."

"Take what you need, baby," he said quietly as his body started to respond to her touch. The sounds of the storm raging overhead finally filtered through his sleep-addled mind also, flashes of lightning casting shadows and giving the room a strobe-like quality.

With the darkness embracing them like a lover, Natalie pushed the comforter off to expose Richie's body to her. She climbed up to her knees and removed her panties as he watched her, climbing between his legs and lowering her head to draw her tongue up the underside of his cock.

She suckled along the tip and worked as much of him into her mouth as possible. He was much bigger than David but far more responsive. She stroked him in time with her gentle sucking, licking down to his balls and laving each one in turn.

"Oh darlin'," he breathed, the heat of her mouth combining with the molten lava that his blood had become caused a fine sheen of sweat to pop out over his skin.

"Call me babygirl," she whispered, "Please..."

"I'm yours, babygirl," Richie moaned, "Use me how you need to."

Natalie looked up towards him and kissed his cock, moving up slowly so he was dragged through the warm wetness between her legs. "I don't wanna use you...I want to thank you," she cooed and straddled him, rocking her hips until he was poised to enter her.

"You're so hot, babygirl," he breathed, "Let me feel all of you."

She whimpered as she sat her full weight on Richie, the feel of him nearly splitting her in half, inch by inch. As she breathed in and sat on him completely, Richie saw her in a flash of lightning as her head was thrown back and she cried out.

"Ahh fuck," Natalie moaned as she slowly started to ride him expertly.

Richie palmed her breasts and caressed her soft curves, reveling in the differences between earlier with Jon and now. He sat up and laid open mouth kisses down her neck to the rosy tip of each breast, taking his time as he nibbled and suckled at the responsive nubs.

He gently scraped his fingernails down her spine and dipped his fingers in between her cheeks causing goosebumps to chase over her skin. "Mmm my beautiful babygirl," Richie cooed.

Natalie wrapped her arms around Richie's neck, fingers tangling in his dark hair. Another flash of lightning illuminated their silhouettes on the far wall and Richie saw tears streaming. Her mouth was parted and she was whimpering and moaning at his touch.

"Oh god Daddy more! Fuck...more," Natalie growled, her eyes squeezed tight.

"No," Richie breathed, "Call me by my name, babe or baby...anything other than that. I'm not David, Natalie."

Her eyes opened and met his, cupping Richie's face in her hands. "More, baby...please..."

"There ya go, darlin'," he smiled and responded with a well-placed roll of his hips. Richie brought one hand between them both, his thumb seeking out her engorged clit and stroking her as he remembered from their last encounter.

Natalie trembled and her stomach clenched, holding Richie's eyes as his hands grasped her ass. "Come with me, baby...please...I need it..." She rocked harder as lightning and thunder crashed around them. "Fill me up, baby!"

"Thought you'd never ask, sweetheart," Richie smiled. As the storm hit its peak, they came together in cries and moans, Natalie's breath caught in her throat as Richie's hot cream spilled inside her and she milked for more.

Richie fell back into his pillows pulling Nat down with him and wrapping his arms around the trembling woman protectively as they both tried to gather themselves back together. Her head was buried in his chest and he could feel her tears escaping.

"Just stay there," she panted, "don't pull out yet. Just let me feel you."

He could still feel her muscles clenching and relaxing around him, letting her stay for as long as she wanted. He eventually softened enough for gravity to take control and he slipped free from her warmth, both emitting small cries of loss.

Richie gathered her up and rolled them both to the side, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear as a flash of lightning showed that she was almost asleep. He held her like that until she drifted into a deep slumber, leaving her to go to the bathroom for a warm washcloth to wipe away the evidence of their coupling.

Natalie didn't stir as Richie gently washed between her legs. He cleaned himself up as well and climbed in behind her, wrapping his arm around her and whispered, "Sleep tight, beautiful." Richie fell asleep quickly and soon their light snores were heard.

Outside the bedroom, a dark figure leaned against the door frame and grinned, raising a cell phone and zooming in with the camera. The lightning flashed to illuminate the outline of thick curly hair as the man turned and headed down the hall to Natalie's bedroom.