Karen Fielding parked her car in the area of the municipal car park that was signposted as reserved for court and Judicial Service staff. Just as she was getting out of her car, a uniformed man came up to her.
“This is a reserved parking area, young lady,” the man told her.
“Yes, I know. I’m here on Judicial Service business,” Karen replied and held up the identification card she kept on a cord around her neck.”
“Oh, that’s fine, miss. Sorry, we keep getting people parking here when they shouldn’t.”
“No problem.”
Karen collected her briefcase from the back seat, shut the door and locked it, and started walking towards the Judicial Services building. Looking across at the public car park, she noticed a grey SUV with two women inside, an older woman in her forties and a younger girl in her late teens. The younger girl was in tears and the older woman, presumably her mother, was trying to console her.
Ignoring them, Karen went up to a door marked ‘Department for Justice, Correction Centre, Women’s Section’. Entering, Karen found herself in a room with several rows of chairs to her left and a counter straight ahead. Two uniformed women stood behind the counter and a young women and an older woman sat in the front row of the chairs on the left.
“Can I help you?” The older of the two officers behind the counter greeted Karen. Karen noted she had three stripes on her epaulets, against the two stripes of her colleague.
Again, Karen held up her identification card.
“Karen Fielding, from head office, here to see Sheila Monroe. I believe I’m expected.”
“That’s me. I’m Sheila. This is Becky, one of our junior officers. Good to meet you, Karen. I believe you’re writing a new booklet for offenders?”
“That’s right. I’m visiting several locations to see how they do things. I’m very conscious the booklet will need to apply to every centre and all offenders. For the moment I’m just doing the services we provide for female offenders.”
Before Sheila could respond, a door behind the counter opened and they were joined by another officer.
“Have we got another offender to deal with?” the new arrival asked.
“No, this is Karen from head office, Angela,” Sheila explained. “I don’t think she’d appreciate us whacking her bottom!”
Karen blushed.
Angela Smith looked hard at Karen before extending a hand. They shook hands briefly, while Karen smiled awkwardly.
“Angela, how about you show Karen through our procedure, and while you’re at it you might put the kettle on,” Sheila suggested.
“Okay, come this way, Karen.”
Angela led Karen through the door by the side of the counter area and into a long corridor with several doors leading off. At the first doorway, she entered and Karen found they were in a small room with a table, four chairs and a kitchen area with sink, kettle and a cupboard. Two more female officers were sitting at the table drinking coffee.
“This is Daisy Arnott, our latest recruit, and this is Mary Williams. Tea or coffee, Karen?”
“Coffee, please. Black, no sugar. Good to meet you, ladies.” Karen noted that Mary also had two stripes on her epaulets, while Daisy had just a single stripe.
“So, how many referrals do you get a day?” Karen asked, more to break a slightly uncomfortable silence as Angela filled a kettle. “I take it the two women sitting in the reception area are here for their sentence to be carried out.”
“The younger one is here for eight strokes of the cane, the other is her mother who is accompanying her for moral support. We have twelve people booked in for today so far and of course we might get two or three who come straight from the court after they’ve been sentenced.”
“You’re finding more people are opting for the corporal punishment alternative?”
“Yes. Most magistrates now offer several options once a person has been found guilty. Offenders can choose between a fine, community service, a short spell in prison and corporal punishment.”
“I’d have thought paying a fine would be the most attractive penalty.”
“Fines can be quite large these days, more than people can easily pay. Few want community service because that means going around picking up litter while dressed in a vivid orange jumpsuit. That’s too embarrassing for most, and of course prison, even for a week or two, is never attractive.
“Depending on the offence and a few other factors, a magistrate might for example offer the guilty person the choice between four weeks of community service and eight or ten strokes of the cane. If the offender or their legal representative asks if a fine could be imposed instead, the magistrate might make the fine as much as a thousand pounds, even more.”
“I see. Yes, I can understand how corporal punishment might be chosen.”
“The things is, corporal punishment is time and cost effective for the whole justice system, and offenders can find it works for them too.”
Karen nodded thoughtfully. “So, what’s the procedure? Suppose a woman has been found guilty in the courtroom and chooses to receive corporal punishment, what happens then?”
“They usually have fourteen days to get it done. Some will prefer to come straight here from the court, and we will carry out the sentence. Some might come here and simply arrange an appointment. Of course, most will go home, think about it, and phone some days later to make the appointment.”
The kettle boiled and Angela made coffee for herself and Karen, and tea for Sheila.
“Back in a moment. I’ll just take this tea through to Sheila.”
Karen took her coffee and warmed her hands around her mug of coffee as she waited for Angela to return. She felt a foreboding chill in the air, despite smiling at the two officers seated at the table.
“So, perhaps you could take me through a typical visit, Angela,” Karen suggested when the officer returned. “They will all arrive through the main door and report at the counter, correct?”
“Correct.”
“And hand you their paperwork?”
“Yes We check their ID with several questions; address, date of birth, photo ID, and so on, not that anyone would want to take their place, I suppose, but you never know.”
“Do they usually have someone with them?”
“Quite often. Some will have family or friends with them, some will prefer family and friends not to know so they’ll be on their own.”
“Okay, so an offender has arrived for the sentence to be carried out. They’ve booked in at reception. What happens then?”
“We usually let them have at least ten minutes in the outer waiting area to settle themselves down. We understand they’ll probably be extremely nervous about what we’re going to do to them.”
“Okay. What then?”
Then we’ll go out there and call their name out. We’ll take them through to a preparation room. We have six preparation rooms which are those six doors further along this corridor.”
“Could I see one, please?”
Angela took Karen further along the corridor, unlocked a door and held it open for Karen to enter. Karen looked around inside and saw a low small bed against the wall to the right. On the opposite side of the room was a table with an orange garment neatly folded and placed on top. The further wall had a low bench with four coat hooks on the wall above.
“This is where they have to undress completely and put on an orange robe like this one. They’re much like they use in hospitals. They open at the back and are secured with five pairs of tie-tapes.”
“May I see one?”
“Of course. Put this one on if you like.”
Karen took the robe, unfolded it and threaded her arms into the sleeves.
“Do you want me to fasten the back?” Angela asked.
“No thanks, I’ve got the idea,” Karen replied, taking the garment off.
“Pop it in the basket, Karen. We only use them once before re-laundering them.”
“And offenders have to be completely naked under the gown?”
“If someone wants to keep their bra on, we don’t usually object, but obviously their bottoms must be quite naked.”
“So, do you watch them undress?”
“Yes. We like to make sure they don’t keep their knickers on under the robe. That wouldn’t be a big problem, but it is against regulations and might cause a small delay when we get to the punishment stage.” Angela smiled.
Karen nodded thoughtfully. The room’s apple green walls and basic furniture did little to inspire.
“Okay, so what happens after they’ve changed? By the way, are the people they’ve brought along for support still with them at this stage?”
“We allow one person to accompany them, as long as that person is female. Occasionally an offender will bring a father, a boyfriend, even a husband along, but males are only permitted in the reception area.”
“Why?”
“After they’ve been caned, offenders don’t usually stop to refasten the orange gowns when they return to their preparation room. It might be rather embarrassing for them if males were around.”
Karen blushed. “I see. So when they’ve changed, what happens then?”
From the preparation room, we take them to a small waiting area through the door at the end of the corridor. We lock the preparation room so their belongings are secure.”
“Can you show me, please?”
Angela checked her watch. “We’ll need to be quick. We’re due to start dealing with offenders in ten minutes. This way.”
Angela took Karen to the end of the corridor and through the door at the end. They entered a small room with ten chairs arranged in two rows of five. Two doors in the opposite wall were marked with small signs that read Punishment Room One and Punishment Room Two. A water dispenser stood against one of the side walls.
“Again, both the punishment rooms are identical. Let me show you Punishment Room One, which we’ll be using today.”
Angela unlocked the door and held it open for Karen to enter.
“Oh! It looks so grim!” Karen exclaimed.
Immediately ahead of her was a padded bench with a smaller padded shelf immediately in front. She could see several sets of leather straps attached to the bench, and a simple metal cabinet to the left of the room.
“I guess, in view of what happens here, it’s never going to look inviting, is it?” Angela responded.
“No, I suppose not. So, what does the offender have to do?”
“They kneel on the lower shelf and bend forward across the upper padded area. As you can see, there are various straps we use to fasten them down.”
“Is that always necessary?”
“Possibly not. Most offenders tend to be quite cooperative. They would probably get into position and stay there without being strapped down. But regulations state that they must be secured, both for their safety and to make sure they can’t jump up and delay their punishment.”
“Their safety?”
“It’s conceivable they might slip off the bench and fall to the floor.”
“I see. And could I see the type of cane you use, please?”
Angela opened the metal cabinet and pulled out a rattan cane about two and a half feet long. Karen could see several other similar canes lying in the cabinet.
“Here, hold it,” Angela offered. “See what you think.”
“It’s more springy than I imagined,” was Karen’s first reaction.
“Yes, to give more of a whipping type stroke rather than a blunt instrument type of blow. It stings and smarts rather than just bruising.”
“Very effective, I should imagine,” was Karen’s final thought as she handed the cane back to Angela. “And the bench, how comfortable is it to kneel on?”
“Try it. See what you think.”
Karen knelt on the lower pad and bent across the upper part.
“The upper level is a bit of a stretch for me.”
“Hold on, I can adjust that,” Angela replied as she turned a crank. “The previous occupant must have been a bit taller than you.”
The lower pad moved upwards until Karen could comfortably bend across the upper table.
“That looks to be about the right height for you. How does it feel?”
“Better. And I’m feeling my trousers are stretched fairly tightly across my bottom.”
“Yes, making a good target,” Angela replied with a giggle. “Would you like to feel a couple of strokes while you’re there?”
“No thank you!” Karen replied as she quickly climbed off the bench. “I think I’ve seen enough. Shall we go back to the reception area?”
Angela chuckled as she replaced the cane in the cabinet and led the way back along the corridor.
“Let’s go through to reception,” Angela suggested. “You saw our first customer of the day when you arrived. There’s another one due.”
As they went behind the counter, Karen looked across the room at the girl sitting with her mother. Another two girls, probably teenagers, were also sitting near to them. All appeared extremely nervous.
“We seem to have two new arrivals,” Karen observed.
“Yes,” Sheila replied. “The one on the left is here for punishment. The other is her friend just here for support.”
“They all look petrified, even those accompanying the offenders,” Karen remarked.
“I guess the waiting is as bad if not worse than the actual punishment,” Angela suggested.
“Do you keep them waiting long?”
“These two have appointments for ten o’clock.” Sheila checked the time. “Three minutes to go. We like to keep to schedule.”
“So, who have we got?”
Sheila looked through two sets of paperwork.
“We have Alice Georgia Higgins. Age; nineteen. Found guilty of shouting aggressive comments at a protest. Sentenced to a fine of twenty pounds and eight strokes of the cane. The fine was paid two days ago, when she also made this appointment. The woman accompanying her is her mother.
“The other offender sitting with her friend is Grace Julia Smith. Age; eighteen. Guilty of being drunk and disorderly and verbally abusing a police officer on a Saturday night in town. Sentenced to six strokes.”
“Shall we start?” Angela asked.
“Why not? Yes, carry on.”
Angela went across to Alice Higgins, sitting with her mother. Karen moved out from behind the counter so she could hear the conversation.
“Alice Georgia Higgins? Would you come with me please? You can come too, Mrs Higgins, or wait here if you prefer.”
“Yes, I’ll stay with my daughter.”
Alice and her mother stood up and followed Angela through the door and into the corridor leading to the preparation rooms. Karen followed and watched as Angela unlocked the door to Preparation Room One and ushered Alice and her mother inside. Karen saw the door close behind them, then returned to the counter.
“So, Alice will now be undressing and changing into one of the orange robes, Sheila?”
“That’s correct.”
At that moment, the younger of the two officers who were in the kitchen area came to the reception counter.
“Mary is just checking the punishment room. She wants me to get Grace Smith ready.”
“Okay, carry on. Use Preparation Room Two.”
Karen waited behind the counter as Daisy Arnott went across to the two teenagers. They both stood up and followed Daisy through to the corridor.
A few minutes later, Sheila said, “Karen, if you want to know more of what goes on, why don’t you look in on Daisy and see how she’s getting on with Grace Smith?”
“Can I do that?” Karen questioned.
“Certainly. You’re an officer of the Department for Justice.”
Karen went through to the corridor and listened at the door to Preparation Room Two. She could hear faint murmurings, mainly the voice of Daisy Arnott. Karen tapped softly on the door and pushed it partly open.
“Hi’. I’m Karen Fielding. Just looking in to see how you’re getting on.”
Grace, a short girl with long dark hair was standing with her back to the door. The orange robe was on her outstretched arms and Daisy was tying the five tapes at the back. Karen couldn’t help but catch a glimpse of Grace’s naked bottom. Grace’s friend was sitting on the small bed watching.
“We’re doing fine,” Daisy answered. “Aren’t we Grace? There! That’s your gown all done up.”
“Perhaps I should explain,” Karen said, feeling awkward. “I’m here to see how the system works and maybe make any improvements, provide more information to, um, people like yourself. That sort of thing.”
Grace just looked at her.
“Do you want her to give you people marks out of ten about how you thrash her?” Grace’s friend asked sarcastically.
“We simply carry out the court’s sentence,” Karen hastened to respond. “Grace will have chosen to receive corporal punishment.”
The friend grunted.
“Shall we go through to the waiting area?” Daisy asked quickly, hoping to avoid an argument starting.
Karen pulled the door open and went out into the corridor. Grace, her friend and Daisy followed, and Daisy locked the door behind them. She led the way through the door at the end of the corridor and into the waiting area where Alice Higgins and her mother were already sitting. Angela was nowhere to be seen, but muffled conversation from within the punishment room confirmed she was inside with Mary.
“Take a seat, girls,” Daisy said brightly. “I’m sure we won’t be long.”
Daisy half-opened the door to Punishment Room One and looked inside.
“Alice Higgins and Grace Smith are both ready for you, Mary.”
Angela then appeared.
“Okay, Alice. In you come.”
“Can I go with her?” Mrs Higgins asked.
“No, sorry, you have to wait here.”
As Alice stood up, Angela took her arm and gently led her through into the punishment room. The door closed behind them.
Karen looked at Mrs Higgins, now sitting alone, and the two teenage girls with Daisy, and sat behind all four.
“How are you feeling, Grace?” Karen immediately felt guilty at asking such a question.
“Scared.”
“How do you think she feels?” Grace’s friend snapped back.
“Sorry. Silly question.”
“My Alice asked for this,” Mrs Higgins said. “I mean, she did a silly thing, so there was always going to be some kind of consequence. We could have paid the fine, I suppose, even though it was a large amount.”
“Yes, there is always a choice, isn’t there?” Karen added.
“Some choice!” Grace’s friend retorted. “Pay hundreds of pounds or get your backside whipped.”
“You don’t get taken to court for no reason,” Mrs Higgins argued. “If you do the crime, then you have to pay the price.”
Just then, a muffled crack was heard from within the punishment room.
“Oh god!” Mrs Higgins murmured. As they all listened to seven more muffled cracks, and several cries, Alice’s mother jumped at each one.
And then there was silence.
“Oh god, I hope she’s alright,” Mrs Higgins said to no one in particular. She took a handkerchief out of her pocket and wiped her eyes.
The door opened and Alice reappeared, the gown hanging loosely around her shoulders and her eyes wet with tears. She moved very slowly. Angela also appeared and took Alice’s arm.
“We’ll go back to the preparation room, Mrs Higgins,” Angela explained. “Alice can have a little lie-down and then she can get dressed.”
Karen was tempted to follow them out into the corridor but decided instead to stay with Grace Smith and her friend. All in the waiting area watched as Alice was taken slowly out, her unfastened orange robe hanging loose, and her weal-striped bottom clearly visible.
“What happens in there?” Grace asked Daisy in a panic. “What are they going to do to me?”
“It’s not really very scary,” Daisy replied. “You just kneel on a pad and bend over, then you get your bottom smacked. Just do as we ask, and it will soon be over.”
Karen also listened to Daisy’s answer but, like Grace, wasn’t convinced.
“Is it always the same officer that goes into the punishment room with them that also was with them when they changed into the orange gown?” Karen asked.
“Usually, yes. So, I’ll be with Grace when she’s called in by Mary.”
“Are you going to do it?” Grace looked round suddenly.
“No, Mary is a more senior officer than me. She will be the one to administer your punishment. Don’t worry. She’s a nice lady.”
Just then, the door opened and Mary appeared.
“Grace. Would you come through, please?”
Before Grace had time to think, Daisy grabbed her by the arm and pulled her to her feet. They went into the punishment room and the door closed behind them.
“So, what is your role in all of this?” Grace’s friend asked, when she was alone with Karen.
“I’m writing a leaflet to help people prepare for corporal punishment,” Karen explained. “I’m here to see how it’s done and try to make things easier for people.”
“Grace was absolutely terrified. How can you make that any easier?”
“Hopefully, a little more knowledge about what happens will help, although I don’t suppose anything will make it really easy. But then, it is a punishment so perhaps it shouldn’t be too easy.”
“Maybe,” the friend conceded. “I’m just glad it’s Grace in there and not me.”
“Has that affected your behaviour then? I mean, when you’re out clubbing and that sort of thing.”
“Too right it has! If a police officer tells me to move, I move!”
“Which kind of sounds like the system is working.”
The friend just had time to grunt when they heard the first crack that told them Grace’s punishment had begun. Five more cracks, each followed by a shrill wail, came at about ten second intervals. Then there was silence.
“That’s it done, isn’t it?” the friend asked.
“I think so.”
“So why isn’t she coming out?”
“It takes a few minutes for the person to get ready, catch their breath, that sort of thing.”
“Why?”
Before Karen could come up with an answer, the door opened and Grace emerged with Daisy holding her arm.
“All done,” Daisy said brightly. “Let’s go back to the preparation room and Daisy can get dressed.”
As Daisy led Grace through to the corridor, her friend and Karen both followed. Both looked down at Grace’s bare bottom as she, too, had not waited for her robe to be refastened. They reached Grace’s preparation room and Daisy unlocked the door. After ushering Grace and her friend inside, she turned to Karen and said, “Can I leave you to look after Grace? Mary wants me to see if we have any further clients.”
“Oh, okay.”
As Grace found a handkerchief and began wiping her eyes dry, Karen suggested, “Do you want to lie down for a bit? You know, until you recover?”
“No!” Grace replied firmly. “All I want to do is get dressed and get out of here.”
Grace struggled to get the gown off her arms and Karen pulled it away, leaving Grace naked apart from her bra.
“Are you going to put your knickers on?” Grace’s friend asked.
“Of course!” Grace snapped.
The friend found the brief white panties amongst Grace’s clothing and handed them to her. Grace was lurching around on one foot as she tried to feed her feet into the tiny panties, so Karen put an arm around her shoulders to steady her while the friend helped with the panties. Grace’s white T-shirt was easier to get on the girl, and then she was helped into her jeans.
“I can’t get them done up,” Grace’s friend said as she struggled to get the zip done up.
“I expect her bottom is a bit swollen,” Karen suggested.
“Let me get my shoes on,” Grace said sharply. “I want to get out of here.”
“But your zip is only halfway up and I can’t do the button up at all,” her friend protested.
“Leave it! Come on, right now I don’t care who sees.”
Karen opened the door and followed the two girls along the corridor and out into the reception area. Sheila had the required papers ready, which Grace snatched out of her hand, and the two girls left.
Karen noticed a woman wearing a smart two-piece business suit sitting alone.
“Another client?” she asked Sheila.
“Yes, she’s come straight from court. Lisa Jane Martindale. She’s forty-two, convicted of driving with over the prescribed limit for alcohol. She’s getting ten strokes. She comes from an address in the better part of town and I think she’s hoping to keep her conviction and her sentence secret. She asked if the sentence could be carried out straight away and I told her we could do that.”
“Okay, so who is going to deal with her?”
“We were just talking about that. We wondered if you’d like to assist her in getting ready, then I’ll then do the actual caning.”
“Me? Is that allowed?”
“Why not? You’re an officer of the Justice Department.”
“Oh, okay.” Karen considered what she was being asked to do. “Shall I take her through now?”
“You could have a cup of coffee first, if you want.”
“I think I’d prefer to make a start.”
“Okay, I’ll get the punishment room ready. We’ll use Punishment Room One again. You’d better take her into Preparation Room Four.”
Sheila left the reception area, and Karen went across to Lisa Martindale.
“Lisa Jane Martindale?”
“Yes,” the woman replied curtly. “How long am I going to have to wait?”
Karen ignored the hostility, believing it might be down to nerves. “No longer, Ms Martindale. I’m Karen, may I call you Lisa?”
“If you want.”
“Come with me, please.”
Karen escorted Lisa Martindale through to the corridor.
“I believe you’ve come straight from your court appearance. Is that right?” Karen asked to break the stony silence.
“Yes, I had to pay a fine and get my backside thrashed. It was the only way to avoid a driving ban.”
“You need your car, I expect.”
“For my job, yes.”
They reached Preparation Room Four and Karen used the key she’d been given to unlock the door.
“Okay, here is where you get ready. I need you to strip off completely and put this orange gown on.”
“Is this where you do it?”
“No, this is where you change. When we go through to the next room, I’ll lock the door so your possessions are safe and secure.”
“You’re going to stand there and watch me, are you?” Lisa asked as she slipped off her jacket.
“I have to; regulations. Shall I take your jacket and hang it on this coat hanger?”
Lisa handed over the jacket, but didn’t reply. She hesitated, her fingers on the top button of her blouse.
“Does my blouse really have to come off? Surely, it’s my bottom that needs to be uncovered, isn’t it?”
“Yes, regulations again. You can keep your bra on though, if you want.”
“I do want. This is really humiliating, you know. It’s bad enough having my bottom whacked like a naughty schoolgirl, especially at my age.” Lisa unbuttoned her blouse and took it off, leaving just her black lacy bra above her waist. “You’re the one who is going to whack me, are you?”
“No, that will be done by a senior officer,” Karen answered, adding in what she hoped was a compassionate tone, “I’ll be with you, though.”
“Can I put that gown thing on before I take my trousers off?”
Karen shrugged. “Yes, if you want. Let me help you.”
Karen picked up the orange gown, gave it a shake to unfold it, and held it out for Lisa to thread her arms into the sleeves.
Lisa smiled sheepishly. “It opens at the back, does it? Of course it does.”
“Turn round and I’ll tie the tapes together.”
Lisa turned her back to Karen, who then tied all five pairs of tapes. Lisa kicked off her shoes and unfastened her trousers under the robe. She pushed her trousers and black lacy panties down together and stepped out of them.
“Right. I’m naked except for my bra. What now?”
“If you’re ready, we’ll go through to a waiting area.”
“Ready as I’ll ever be, I suppose. Oh god! I’m really dreading this, you know.”
“I’m sure. Look, we’re just going to smack your bottom. It’ll hurt, but it’s soon over with. You obviously felt this was the best option for you when you were sentenced by the magistrates.”
“Yes, the important thing was to keep my driving licence. By choosing this option I was able to pay a smaller fine and keep my licence. There was no choice really however unpalatable it sounded. I haven’t had my bottom smacked since I was eleven years old!”
“I can understand that,” Karen answered sincerely. “I’d find it hard to do my job without my car too.”
“Might be especially awkward if you had to have your backside whacked!” Lisa said with a smile.
“True. Very true.” Karen’s mind immediately drifted into wondering what would happen if she was convicted of something similar and chose to receive corporal punishment. Realising Lisa was watching her, she said, “Shall we go through?”
“Might as well. Get it over with, or something. Sorry, I’m getting a bit flustered.”
“No problem. Come on.” Karen took Lisa’s arm and led her out into the corridor, locking the door behind them. “This way.”
The small waiting room was empty.
“Take a seat, Lisa. I’ll see if everything is ready.”
Karen tapped lightly on the door to Punishment Room One and cautiously opened the door.
“Are you ready for us, Sheila?”
“Yes, bring her in.”
Karen turned to Lisa, who was already on her feet. Karen held the door open and Lisa entered the punishment room, then suddenly stopped when she saw the bench ahead of her.
“Oh my god!”
“It’s not as bad as it looks, Lisa,” Karen said. “Come on, kneel on this lower pad for me.”
With a little guidance from Karen, Lisa knelt on the lower pad, all the while staring at the various straps and buckles.
“I’m just fastening a strap across your lower legs, Lisa, so you can’t kick up. Then I’ll do the same with one across your thighs.”
“That’s rather tight,” Lisa complained.
“It has to be. We need to keep you secure.”
“It’s okay, I know I must be punished. I’m willing to hold still while you do it.”
“I’m sure you are, Lisa, but we have to follow regulations. And these straps will prevent you falling off and hurting yourself.”
“I rather think what this lady is going to do to my backside will hurt somewhat more than falling onto the floor.”
Karen struggled to find a suitable reply. Instead, she simply said, “Okay, bend over, Lisa.”
Lisa bent along the padded top, saw the restraints for her wrists and stretched her arms out so they could be secured. Karen first secured the strap around Lisa’s waist and then moved to the wrist straps.
“Is that okay, Sheila?” Karen asked, turning to the senior officer.
“That’s fine. Don’t forget to untie the back of the gown.”
Karen blushed; she’d quite forgotten that part. She unfastened all five pairs of ties and pulled the gown wide apart to expose all of Lisa’s compact bottom and her entire back. As Karen stepped to one side, she saw Sheila already had the cane in her hand.
“Ten strokes,” Sheila announced before she quickly whipped the cane down and applied the first stroke.
“Yeeeouch!!” Lisa screamed. After a few moments, she added, “Sorry.”
“That’s fine. Yell as much as you like,” Sheila responded.
Karen felt she wanted to hold Lisa’s hand, but wasn’t sure whether that was permitted. She made a mental note to ask later.
A second stroke of the cane made Lisa strain against her bindings, and she grunted rather than cry out. She snatched at each of the following strokes, occasionally cried or grunted while Sheila systematically applied the cane. Karen noted that Sheila raised the cane high over her shoulder before she swept the cane down with ever increasing speed and power. Clearly, a judicial caning was something to fear.
Karen watched as Sheila administered each stroke, and looked to see Lisa’s reaction. The woman was certainly suffering, but appeared resolved to accept her punishment.
Then Sheila declared, “That completes the sentence as prescribed by the court, Ms Martindale. Karen will release you and take you back to the preparation room.”
The senior officer gave the cane a wipe with an antiseptic cloth, replaced it in the cupboard and left the room. Karen went to the front of the bench and asked, “How are you feeling, Lisa?”
“My backside hurts like the devil! Now, can you get these damn straps off me?” “Of course.”
Karen unfastened the restraints as quickly as she could and took Lisa’s arm as she began to ease herself off the bench.
“Take it slowly. Your legs might feel a little unsteady to begin with.”
As Lisa stood, so she reached behind her with both hands and started to massage her buttocks. “Wow! I’ll be staying off the alcohol for a while, at least whenever I’m driving. I wouldn’t want to go through that again!”
“Which is really the point, I suppose,” Karen responded without really thinking.
“Gee! Thanks for that! Yes, I was a naughty girl and I’ve had my bottom smacked. Okay?”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean anything,” Karen hastened to defend herself.
“No, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you. I’m just in a lot of pain right now.”
“Yes, of course. Let’s get you back to the preparation room.”
They slowly made their way back to Lisa’s preparation room, where Lisa immediately dived face down onto the small bed. Karen looked down at the ten red weals lining Lisa’s bottom. They looked as sore as Lisa was suggesting.
“Can I get you a glass of water?”
“No, just let me catch my breath. I need to get dressed and out of here. Things to do.”
After several minutes, Lisa got off the bed and started getting dressed. Karen handed her clothes to her. Karen then escorted her out to the counter where Sheila had the necessary papers ready.
Lisa took the papers, but before she left she turned to Karen and said, “Thank you.”
“Another happy customer,” Sheila commented when the outer door closed behind Lisa.
The End
© Jenny Clark and Kenny Walters 2026