The rain was pounding against the window so that most of the view was obscured by the silver opacity blurring the glass. This was a shame because from the staff room window on a good day one could see the gentle woods that sloped raggedly down to the shoreline.
Nadine Dawson sighed and stirred her tea as if savouring the task, after all there wasn’t much else to do.
“Do you think this damn weather will ever let up?” she asked.
Thomas grunted in amusement and without looking up from his three-day-old newspaper replied, “Known it to go on like this for weeks.” His tone was bored and faintly disapproving. “This is an island you see,” he added somewhat unnecessarily, “Got its own weather.”
Thomas was a tweedy bachelor lost in the years between 40-something and 60. Nadine knew he was supposed to teach geography, but she had barely ever seen him out of the tattered armchair buy the fire.
He was one of the old characters at Charles the Martyr here on Osea Island and had probably been here since the ark. Nadine smiled at him politely as behoved a junior staff member.
The dark-haired slight woman had taken the position as second-string English teacher with very great reluctance, after all who wanted to be incarcerated on an island with 600 teenage girls and no way off for 12 weeks at a stretch? But it had been the only job going for a 28-year-old late-comer to teaching and she was beginning to regret it.
“Trouble is,” Thomas continued as if he was addressing the lower sixth, “this sort of relentless downpour makes the girls,” he pronounced it ‘gals,’ “makes the girls restless and uppity. I had to thrash two of the upper fifth only this morning: such a tiresome business.”
“Damn good thrashing is what some of them need,” Nadine muttered, finally making the assault on the well-stirred tea.
“Bare benders mind you, it’s the only way,” Thomas added with a tone of regret.
“Bah, barely hurts them,” Nadine scoffed, “Tough little blighters; they practically laugh in my face after I have paid some of them out.”
“Maybe you aren’t doing it right,” another male voice chipped in.
David Kent gave her a wink and took a sip of his own tea from his place at the window.
Kent was much younger than Thomas, nearer to Nadine’s own age in fact and the jaded decrepitude of public school teaching had yet to squash him into the same mould as the older man.
Nadine bristled at the suggestion that she was not his equal when it came to discipline.
“The permitted six to eight strokes are barely enough to get their attention,” she countered.
“I suppose you laughed at a mere six during your school days,” David chuckled.
Nadine pouted and made a small shrug. “Didn’t have the cane at my school,” she muttered.
“Sorry, but might I opine that you don’t know what you’re talking about?” he said gently. “In my experience most girls put a brave face on it but are in no hurry to come back for more.”
Nadine glared at him and gulped down another mouthful of tea.
“It is in the eyes,” David continued as he sauntered over. He had lowered his voice to exclude Thomas, who in any case seemed oblivious now. “They may be smirking or trying to, but the eyes tend to water and they avoid one’s gaze.”
David Kent had a presence that was somehow intimidating and Nadine found herself backing away.
“I maintain that they don’t feel it. Why I could probably take twice as much without blinking,” Nadine blurted.
“Really?” he said in surprise, “Would you care to put a small wager on that?”
“Not exactly something we could prove is it?” Nadine sneered.
David Kent’s eyes narrowed and he made to stroke his chin. “Tell you what,” he said, “I have a couple of the upper sixth girls dropping by my study later. They both have an appointment with my cane, but I’ll tell you what, I’ll do one and you handle the other…”
Nadine cocked her head and allowed her eyes to race in her head as if trying to scry some hidden danger.
“If I get more of a reaction from mine than you do from your girl then…” David continued and then lowering his voice as he glanced at an oblivious Thomas added, “…you have to take a fulsome caning from me.”
Nadine snorted in astonishment. “And I suppose you will submit to me when I win,” she said scornfully.
“Would you like to cane me then?” David winked.
“No,” Nadine said irritably, “But I bet you would love to get my knickers down.”
“I can think of worse things,” he chuckled, “But I didn’t think you would have the nerve to go for it anyway.”
“Now hang on,” she blustered, “I can handle a couple of girls as well as you can. When I do, you can buy me a luxury food hamper from the mainland, I am sick of the food here.”
“And you will take as many strokes as I think fair?” David put in decisively.
Nadine’s eyes widened and she almost balked it, but instead she reluctantly nodded.
“On the bare?” David prompted her.
“Champagne,” she finally agreed with a nod, “I want champagne in the hamper that you will have to buy.”
“Done,” David said brightly and extended his hand.
Nadine’s reciprocal shake was an automatic gesture and left her with a strange tingle in her tummy.
*
The two young women stood sullenly in David Kent’s study facing his desk. Nadine hung back at the window giving them the once over with a severe gaze.
Catherine Meadows was the obvious leader of the two. She was a tall cool blonde with indolent blue eyes and a ‘dare you to’ pout. At 18 she was in her last year at Charles the Martyr and for most of her school career she had managed to stay under the disciplinary radar.
Her friend, Annabelle Wilson-White was another kettle. She was shorter and dark with a habit of nervously biting her lip. She was also somewhat wide-eyed and looked much younger than her 18 years.
Both girls wore long hair pinned up off the shoulder in a manner that put in a claim of womanhood, although Catherine carried it off much better and indeed had Nadine chanced across her on Oxford Street or Mayfair she would not have had her pegged as a schoolgirl at all.
“You have a smart mouth don’t you Miss Meadows?” David sighed as he regarded the young woman with a steel cold stare.
Catherine invested a little more of her expression into her pout and insolently rolled her eyes. An act that sent Annabelle gaping in shock and had her unconsciously put an extra space between the two of them.
“I believe I asked you a question Miss Meadows,” David growled.
Catherine shrugged and levelled her eyes to meet the teacher as if she were above such things. “If you think so perhaps I shouldn’t answer that,” she said in a bored voice.
Nadine startled at her reply and had to bite her tongue.
“And you,” David switched targets to Annabelle who jerked at being addressed, “Do you have anything to say for yourself?”
“No Sir, I… I didn’t mean it… I… that is Catherine…” she bit her lip as she looked sideways and her voice tailed off.
Catherine glared at her.
“I don’t make a distinction between you,” David sighed, “You are both as bad as each other.”
He then muttered his way through a short list of sanctionable offences such as smoking, being out of bounds, backchat and general attitude deficiencies.
“As you have sinned together you can be punished together. That way you won’t be smarting off to each other how you ducked my wrath,” Kent told them sharply, but his gaze rested on Catherine.
She responded with another eye roll.
David looked at Nadine who shrugged. At the moment they were solid in the face of student insolence.
“Perhaps you will deal with Annabelle for me?” he said as if it hadn’t been prearranged.
Nadine narrowed her eyes and was about to protest that she was well able to handle the likes of Catherine, but then thought better of it. Kent was practically handing her victory with the timid girl. She nodded.
“Miss Wilson-White, please be so kind as to prepare yourself and then go to face that wall,” David said pointing. “You too Miss Meadows, but I think I will take you first, you know the drill.”
Annabelle drew in a long slow breath and flushed. Then with trembled fingers she reached under her skirt for her knickers and reluctantly stepped out of them. Catherine looked even more uncomfortable, but covered it with sullen pride opting to boldly remove her skirt before stepping quickly out of her underwear. By the time Annabelle was naked but for charcoal stockings under her blouse Catherine was already bare-bottomed and regarding the back of the stuffed armchair.
Annabelle looked sheepish facing the wall with her hands on her head; the hem of her blouse rising to expose her quite pert full bare bottom. Nadine found the sight strangely disconcerting and averted her eyes to watch Catherine.
The taller girl was slightly slimmer and although her bottom jutted pertly in profile, as she turned it became small and neat as she folded herself elegantly over the back of the chair.
“Unbelievable,” David Kent snarled as he took up the cane, “Every rule in the book, as if you don’t know any better.”
“Yes Sir,” Catherine replied, now sounding rather less arrogant.
“By rights I ought to give you at least six for each sanction or even eight, but by my reckoning, that would make it 40 strokes,” he sighed. “Some people don’t think six or eight is enough as it is,” he added looking at Nadine.
Annabelle took her nose from the wall and gasped. Even Catherine shuffled uncomfortably.
After a very long pause David finally announced “Your house master has taken a very dim view of your behaviour and has on this occasion authorised twice eight,” even this drew a gasp, but pushing on he said. “Now prepare.”
The cane made a wobbling sound as David lined it up to Catherine’s bare bottom and she clenched. When the biting stick didn’t fall she let out a little breath tightened her behind even more as he tapped it.
Only after a gap in time did she finally relax and David struck.
“Ahhh,” Catherine gasped, this breathy groan was followed up by a throaty squeal.
Nadine noticed that the girl’s pale bottom was bisected by an even whiter line across her flesh, but this weal quickly darkened and plumped up into a tight welt. The errant young woman did a little shimmy as if throwing of the sting.
David caned again and Catherine hissed. “Hmmmm,” she groaned through a clench jaw and her hands fluttered against the back of the old armchair.
There were now two red ridges in parallel lines across her bottom and she dipped her knees as she hugged into the chair.
“Nooo ah-huh,” she wailed as she was caned again and then made a panicked yelped as a fourth seared her behind.
Nadine made a half lean and studied the girl’s face. Catherine’s eyes were red-rimmed and pooled with tears, and her breathing had become short.
David struggled to put more than six strokes across her bottom and at the seventh he had reached the line where her bottom met thighs. He had to place the eighth at the summit just below where the cleft ended.
“Please Sir,” Catherine sobbed.
“Yes?” the teacher intoned.
The girl shook her head and made another life-saving grab at the back of the chair.
“Aieey,” she screamed suddenly and Nadine realised that David had caned her again.
Now there was nothing but gurgled sobs amid laboured breaths as at four or five second intervals David Kent caned the girl again and again. Each actual impact extracted a pained croak, but these soon merged into one as Catherine’s shoulders shook as she descended into defeat.
“Anything smart to say?” David asked her.
“No,” she sniffed, adding a tear-lost ‘sir.’
“Stand up,” he ordered.
A rather meek Catherine got clumsily to her feet and with her head bowed offered her hand to shake.
“Thank you Sir,” she said in a strained voice as David obliged.
“Now go and face the wall while Miss Dawson deals with your compatriot,” he ordered.
“Yes Sir,” Catherine sniffed miserably as she turned and hobbled to her place where she now submissively put her hands on her head.
“Okay, stand out Annabelle,” Nadine said trying to sound stern.
Annabelle obeyed without fuss and walked efficiently to the back of the chair. She bent over to proffer her rather fulsome bottom before Nadine gave the order and quickly settled down.
“Sixteen, is that right?” she checked with David.
He nodded.
Nadine didn’t wait; she drew back her arm and let it swing to place a decent thwack right across the crowns of both cheeks. Annabelle made a small grunt but otherwise didn’t react.
Then lining up her arm Nadine took longer and placed an identical stroke just above the other. The girl made no sound or movement and Nadine glanced at David who was casually looking out of the window. There was an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach and she found some renewed determination.
The third stroke was better aimed and the follow through gave Nadine a satisfying thwack. Annabelle winced and lifted herself onto her toes for a brief second before resuming position.
The next few cuts were frankly a mess and some of them crossed but Nadine knew that none of them were as efficient as they might be. All the while Nadine made small mewling sounds and her face was a picture of grimaces. However all in all she handled much better than Catherine ever had.
Nadine mopped her brow and took a breath. There were eight left to give and Annabelle’s bottom jutted out at her as defiantly as ever. Although it was scored with some respectable welts, either the girl was more stoical or Nadine lacked David’s skill. She was beginning to suspect it was a little of both.
“Okay,” Nadine whispered under her breath.
She was beginning to feel a little guilty. Should she punish the girl harder to salvage her own pride or was she already failing to be sufficiently strict? Ordinarily she would have surrendered the cane to David at this point but her tummy tingled in apprehension at the very thought of this. Not that he had been serious, how could he have been? Surely he wouldn’t…
Nadine drew another breath and laid the cane with a whippy thwack just where Annabelle sat. The girl sucked in a breath and gave her bum a small wiggle. That was the most the girl reacted all through the next six.
Damn, Nadine thought as she surveyed both Annabelle’s bottom and her damp-eyed face. Compared to Catherine, who had now surrendered to some fulsome sobbing as she stood facing the wall, there was no comparison.
The last stroke was crisp and sharp, a fact registered by the long drawn out hiss by Annabelle who arched her back as she rode a wave of pain. Maybe if they had all been like that, Nadine mused.
“Alright,” Nadine said quietly, “You may rise.”
Annabelle got uncomfortably to a standing position and sniffed. Then with an almost shy demeanour she proffered her hand and said, “Thank you miss.”
Nadine returned an equally uncomfortable smile as she shook it.
*
“How did you think that went?” David asked quietly after the girls had gone.
Nadine shrugged like a teenager and looked at her feet.
“If it makes you feel any better I thought Catherine was made of sterner stuff and Annabelle proved to have an arse of steel didn’t she?” he chuckled.
“That wasn’t it though was it?” Nadine replied.
“No,” David agreed, “But your original point was that you could easily handle what the girls did.”
“My mouth is as big as Catherine’s maybe,” Nadine winced and risked an embarrassed look at David.
“So we are agreed then, I don’t owe you champagne and a hamper?” David smiled.
“I guess not,” Nadine muttered.
“I suppose it is only fair that I ask you to take six of the best,” David tried to hide his amusement, “But somehow I doubt that is going to happen,” he added with a laugh.
Nadine bristled. Something about the whole episode had affected her and she couldn’t meet his eyes.
“We both know it is 16 or nothing,” Nadine snapped, “And why wouldn’t it happen? You won okay, I get it, or I am going to….” She looked away and folded her arms. She looked as if she might even stamp her foot, but she didn’t.
“Yes you are, and on the exact same terms as the girls,” David said, now matching her anger and adding a helping of determination.
Nadine wheeled on him as if about to yell and then she saw his eyes and blanched.
*
“You know that this is totally ridiculous don’t you?” Nadine told David in a strained voice. She was wearing only her cotton shirt and a pair of lacy black hold-ups now; the island chill touched her in strange places, taunting her.
Her hands danced over her exposed triangle of dark hair and she suddenly wished she had worn something that was longer in front. Tugging on her blouse to hide the show only revealed more of her bare bottom and she felt searing pools of blood on her cheeks.
“I thought I told you to turn around and face the wall until I was ready,” David Kent smirked.
Nadine threw him an old-fashioned look and sucked her tongue ruefully, but after failing to outstare him she reluctantly obeyed.
“Hands on head please Miss Dawson,” he told her sternly.
Her mouth hung open for a long second as she contemplated a protest and then she complied, highly conscious now that her bare bottom was completely displayed.
“You’re enjoying this aren’t you?” she said scornfully.
“Oh yes,” he grinned.
Nadine pulled a face and made an impotent two-kneed bob as she made to bounce up and down in frustration.
“There is no rush, I want you to think about this, besides, for once I am enjoying the show,” he grinned, “But I think we agreed upon 16 under the same conditions as the girls.”
“Oh God,” Nadine sighed and rolled her eyes to heaven, “Can’t we talk about that?”
“No, I don’t think so, we are beyond that,” he chuckled.
“Anyway, what do you mean under the same conditions as those two brats?” Nadine made a pout and was beginning to feel like a girl herself.
“I was coming to that,” David said archly as he sat on his desk and toyed idly with the cane. It was a senior grade weight, but one of his thinnest and long. “I mean to teach you a lesson I think, that means once we begin there will be no rebellions, negotiations or insolence,” he continued. “That means penalties where I deem them necessary.”
“Penalties?” Nadine gulped.
“Indeed, but I suppose to be fair, just like the girls we could always let you appeal to your line manager in lieu of an actual housemaster if you think I am being too severe.” He let his tongue touch the inside of his cheek as he smirked.
“No one knows about this, no one,” Nadine cried in horror and actually made to turn around.
“Ah-ha, nose to that wall or else,” David said teasingly.
“Ooh you…” this time she stamped her foot in annoyance, but she complied.
“Right then,” David said in a business-like tone, “Eight and then eight and then we will see if you have been a good girl.”
“Bastard,” Nadine hissed.
“Two extras for that I think,” David growled.
“Ah…” she sighed quickly, “Come on I…”
“Negotiation, that’s another two I think,” David said grimly, this time his unseen smile did not entirely reach his eyes.
“Come on, I was only…”
“Oh dear, that is two more, any more quibbles and I’ll start extras in sets of three, are we clear?” David sounded very earnest now, as if even he had half-forgotten he was dealing with a colleague and not a student.
Nadine almost rounded on him and made to protest again but then she grimaced and clamped her jaw shut.
“Is that dumb insolence? I said ‘are we clear?’” David growled.
“No I…” Nadine spluttered in a hasty wail, “No Sir, I mean I understand Sir.”
Sir, David like that and he grinned.
“Time for you to take position I think, stand away and bend right over the back of the armchair, you know the procedure,” David said after one last admiring glance of his target.
“Yes,” Nadine said sullenly.
“What was that?”
“Yes Sir,” Nadine mumbled.
David let it go and watched as his fellow teacher reluctantly lowered herself in the direction of the chair. He noticed that she was bending her knees tucked under and clumsily tugging her shirt tails to cover her bottom.
“Right over, get your behind right up, more,” he said impatiently, “More I said.”
Nadine let out a sigh, and with one last sag of surrender, she finally flopped right over so that her bottom was rounded and directed upwards and out.
“Good enough,” David said, but suddenly his professionalism was tested and figurative punch to the gut sent that general area somewhat tight.
To recover he tapped the offered bare bottom with the cane and let his arm relax.
In response Nadine grimaced in expectation and closed her eyes. She wasn’t surprised by the sudden line of pain. It was sharp and uncompromising, almost as if she had been slashed with a razor. What did overwhelm her was that instead of it fading, the burn got worse and then much worse.
“Ahhhh,” she gasped, but that too was premature for the pain was not finished developing.
The neat red line was high on her bottom curves and as it darkened it puckered and grew into a tight pencil ridge in a long bump of russet flesh. Five seconds later David painted another line below the first and this time Nadine was more vocal.
“Oh my God,” she yelped and then gritted her teeth against a wave of pain.
“Okay, okay, you win, I get it,” she gabbled.
The third stroke made her bark out a heartfelt “yah,” which quickly descended into a ‘nya-hung-ha.’
“Seriously,” she panted once she was able, “I.. I… oh fook, fookerty fook-fook,” she all but yelled as she was caned again, adding in angry frustration, “Come on.”
Her emotion was expressed raggedly and already silent tears rolled from her eyes.
“I’ll overlook that,” David said as he gave her another cut.
“Yaaahhh,” she responded and slammed her fists down repeatedly on the back of the chair and wished she had something to bite down on. “Please David, please,” she sobbed.
“Backing down already?” David said as he caned her again.
Nadine made a croaking sound and began to openly cry.
David waited, as for the woman time hung on end. Then finally she shook her head.
The eighth stroke extracted a proper scream and this time she collapsed into proper open sobbing.
“Come on back to face the wall, we will let those sink in for a good while before we continue,” David said almost kindly.
Nadine allowed herself to be helped to her feet as she grizzled in short pants on her way to face the wall. Hands strayed to her bottom and her fingers danced gently along the crimson fretboard now engraved on her bottom.
“No rubbing now,” David chided.
“I hate you,” she said sullenly as without being asked she put her hands back on her head.
“That’s a pity,” he replied sadly.
From her place near the corner Nadine sighed. “No I don’t,” she said shyly, “But it hurts.”
“I know,” David agreed in a tone of sympathy. “Still fun for me though,” he added with a chuckle.
“Bastard,” Nadine spat, but already her tone was lighter.
“That will cost you another three,” he told her, another seven now on top of the eight she still had coming.
“Like I said, you’re a bastard,” she challenged him, as she spoke she risked the small rebellion of lowering her hands to cup the hot tight rounds of her bottom. They felt swollen and textured to the touch.
“Three more is 10 extra and if you don’t get your hands back on top of your head I’ll add four,” David snapped, “You see how this works?”
“Yes,” Nadine sighed, and wondered if she wasn’t overdoing the bravado. She added a hasty “sir” to her response.
“Eight and 10,” David gaped, “Let’s make that twice nine and see how smart your mouth is after that.”
“Yes Sir,” Nadine feigned weariness and rolled her eyes. At least she wasn’t still bored.
David shook his head and wondered where this was all going to end. After the first eight he had racked his brains for a way to cut it short, it was obvious she couldn’t handle it. Now he didn’t know what to make of her.
“David? I mean Sir,” she asked quietly, trying not to break character.
“Yes?”
“You were right,” Nadine said ruefully.
“Oh yes?” he asked.
“I really had no idea what I was talking about and I apologise for my big mouth,” she said in an almost friendly tone. It felt strange to talk so conversationally with her bottom still bare and throbbing and her hands on her head.
“So you’re learning,” David laughed, “Well I am a teacher,” he added.
Nadine met him halfway with a suppressed laugh.
“I would say I was definitely being taught a lesson,” she agreed with a giggle.
“Feeling better are we? I suggest you keep quiet unless you want those four extras,” David scolded.
“Yes Sir, I mean no Sir,” Nadine said hastily as her eyes widened.
She was absolutely certain now that once the next nine began she would regret every word she had spoken, but she was already wondering if she dare provoke him further, although that was barely a conscious thought. At the forefront of her mind she was wondering if she would ever be able to sit down again.
