chapter 1

No-one was really too surprised when Elizabeth and Lee McKinnon didn’t exchange traditional wedding rings. To call the couple alternative would be an understatement and it was evident for all to see as they stood at the altar that they had constructed in the woods just outside of their property line. The guests in attendance looked on as the couple exchanged their vows, he with a tall top hat perched on top of his hairless head, his moustache curled like an old timey villain, his garb of a tailcoat a drainpipe trousers certainly added to his bad guy look.

She looked to be his perfect bride, the darkness of her ebony curls only matched by the shade of her traditional style wedding dress, some might have thought that they looked better dressed for a funeral than a wedding but Elizabeth and Lee didn’t really care much for what those type of people thought.

The ring bearer for the couple also happened to be their long-time body piercer and tattoo artist Tomasz and was the only person they trusted to do such a thing as what was about to happen. Lee went first as was customary, he was ready to slide the ring through the hole that had just been pierced into Elizabeth’s septum. She in turn was able to return the favour once her eyes had stopped watering, adorning her new husband with his wedding nipple ring.



The wedding reception would be held in a barn on the couple’s land, it had once been a farm and would soon be again now that each of them had given up their city lives in order to make a go of country living. Lee had studied agriculture and knew how things would go, Elizabeth would be his farmer’s wife, or so everyone thought.

The party continued well into the early hours of the morning with dancing and drinking and great food, the guests celebrating Elizabeth and Lee’s marriage and also bidding them a fond farewell as they were about to start their new lives together. It was around 4am when the last of the guests departed, the happy couple watched as the taxi’s tyres kicked up great clouds of dust from the dirt path and then eventually it’s rear lights disappeared into the distance. For the first time they were alone in the place they hoped they’d spend the rest of their lives.

Lee embraced his wife and kissed her passionately, “So, are you ready for this?” he asked her. She looked up at him and nodded eagerly so he took her by the hand and led her towards the back of the barn. There, they opened two large barn doors, if you had looked at them you would have thought that they were the rear exit for the barn, they were identical after all but these doors led to a special area, an area no-one else would ever get to see.

Inside this area was a straw yard, a fair bit smaller than the ones that would be built in the main barn but big enough. There was also all manner of farming equipment, all especially sourced and especially for tonight.

“Fetch me your collar.” ordered Lee and Elizabeth picked up her skirt so that it wouldn’t drag in the mud before retrieving her collar from a nearby table. The collar was a soft baby blue leather and about 3 inches wide, Elizabeth kneeled in front of Lee and presented him with her collar, holding her long raven tresses out of the way as he fastened it around her neck.

Dangling from the collar was a large golden bell that had the name “Bessie” engraved on it, it gently tinkled as its owner moved her head. She presented her hands to her husband and master and was swiftly fitted with a pair of patent leather mittens that were moulded to look like cow’s hooves. They were comfortable to wear and completely impossible to remove by herself, the tiny padlocks that Lee clicked shut were more for symbolism than anything else.