The Disciplined Women of Chapel Island

by Susan Thomas

  "So why suddenly tell them you wouldn't do it any more?"

  "Because I love you. I've never really felt like this about a girl before. I mean they were all nice and I am still friends with many of them but it wasn't like you, Kate. Not like you."

  I felt an anger burning inside me, a volcano as yet unsuspected but ready to erupt. "So who were these people?"

  "I don't really know. I mean when they offered me the job, the listening to talk was put as if it was simply to safeguard the island community, but I was contacted by phone when something more was wanted."

  "Well what did he sound like? Young? Old?"

  "I simply don't know Kate. A voice changer was used and I just heard this creepy kid's voice. The only thing I was told was that it was Number 5 speaking."

  "Number 5! That sort of implies there are quite a few of them, whoever they are."

  "Maybe, but now I have to leave. I'm going to stay with my parents for a short while, they're only about twenty miles from here. I should have no problem getting a job with my qualifications. Anyway I have some money saved and another little project in the pipeline which I am hoping will lead somewhere but..." He trailed off before finishing with, "I'm so sorry to have betrayed you Kate."

  I stood up, angrier than I have ever felt in my life but controlling it. "You have not betrayed me. You betrayed them, whoever they are, and I am going to find them. I want to know what they're up to, who they are and why they are so hidden. But..." I despised the neediness in my voice but couldn't help it, "...may I still see you?"

  I loved the look of surprised delight on his face. Most girls would pay good money to have a man feel like that about them. The next second we were locked in each other's arms and I knew I was crying in spite of hating myself for being such a wimp.

  "Yes if you want that I'd absolutely love it. I can't believe you still want me. You could meet my mum and dad, you'd like them I know. I know you're young yet but... "

  "David let's not worry too much about the future, just keep seeing each other. Do they have water-based sport in London?"

  "Yes of course, lots. Some of the old docks and loads of places."

  "Well if you wanted you could get a job there and when I go to university..."

  He silenced me by kissing me and I just relaxed into his arms. Our relationship took on a new dimension after that, more intense, more serious, no longer just about the sex. I'm sorry if that sounds so crude but up to then although I had begun to feel something much deeper for him and he obviously the same for me, our relationship had been mostly lust. Now though it deepened. We could no longer meet on the island but since he wasn't working I met him often after my work as well as other times.

  It was me that kept postponing meeting his parents. I think I was scared of them and what they'd make of someone so young. In the meanwhile I discovered David had a base in the mainland harbour. There was a run-down boat yard there and he had rented part of it with a small lean-to office against a large brick wall. He had something going on in a small dry dock but it was always covered over when I was there. He wasn't really seeking a new job but working now full time on his project. His parents were delighted to have him home and his mum fussed around him which he found amusing but touching. He didn't seem worried about money as unlike most young men he had saved a great deal. I was annoyed with him about this project because he wouldn't tell me what it was or let me anywhere near the covered over part.

  Of course I now had my own little project. I began to go back to the hunt to track the Chapel Island ownership. There had to be some way to unravel a source but I swiftly realised my little project was going nowhere. It seemed a tangled web of enormous complexity but my instinct told me there had to be some simple way in. Besides, no matter how clever, they must have made a mistake. In books there is always a mistake which leads our intrepid hero to the bad guys. But this wasn't a book and I wasn't the heroine. My lack of success with my project (I told no one what I was up to not even Claire or David) made me curious about David's. That curiosity led to a very big change in our relationship.

  I was dead curious about what he had under wraps in his dry dock and one day went to take a peek. "No Kate. When I'm ready I'll show you, but meanwhile you are never to look. I have a lot of stuff under here and until I've got everything tied up and sorted out this is to remain a secret."

  I was annoyed by that. Didn't he trust me? There were too many secrets floating around, what with Number 5 and the mystery of all the spying so I was determined to take a peek. I arrived one day after work and David was nowhere to be seen, so I hurried down to the dock and was just lifting the covers when he appeared behind me.

  David was very stern, not all like his usual self. "Kate put the cover down. What did I tell you about my project?

  I bluffed, "Oh I don't remember. Now what was it you said?"

  "Kate! Don't lie to me. You know perfectly well I told you never to look. Now you have tried and also lied. That is not acceptable is it?"

  I had a sudden sinking feeling in my tummy as I sensed where this was going. I remembered, too late I feared, that David was from quite an old-fashioned family, that he had been on Chapel Island and knew what happened to a woman who did something wrong, and that he had made lightly spanking my bottom part of our lovemaking. I stammered out apologies and excuses but he took me firmly by my hand and began walking back towards his lean-to office saying, "I know how this must be dealt with."

  We arrived at the office and without saying a word he plonked himself down on a rickety old chair opened his legs wide and pulled me to stand between them.

  "Now then Kate, if our relationship is to work as we both want, I must be able to trust you. Isn't that true?"

  "Yes. I'm sorry, it won't happen again."

  "That's not the point. It already has. In order to trust you I must know you will obey me when I absolutely need you to, but you disobeyed me didn't you?"

  "Yes I suppose so."

  "And then you lied."

  "Um, no."

  "No?" David sounded dangerous.

  "Er... maybe just a little."

  "A little, a lot, no difference. You lied. Now I'm going to have to punish you so that you know I won't accept disobedience or lies."

  With that he reached up under my skirt and began to pull my knickers and tights down. Didn't I put up a fight? Of course I did but it is just so unfair how much stronger he is than me. I couldn't stop them being pulled down and I couldn't stop him from putting me over one knee and locking me there with his other leg. Nor could I stop him pulling my skirt right up so that my bare bottom lay ready and waiting to be spanked.

  Smack! From that very first smack of David's hand on my poor bottom I knew this was going to be a terrible spanking. Sir Charnock had spanked me with his hand and I thought that pretty bad but he wasn't in David's league. He spanked so hard and so fast I couldn't draw breath and try as I might I couldn't free myself. I gasped and cried and very soon began to plead, "David no! Please stop, David. David! I can't! It hurts... please!"

  It was all to no avail. His hand just smacked down hard in an endless spanking that made me wail louder and louder until I was gulping and crying and pleading, sometimes all at the same time. My bottom was so hot and sore it defies my description and every single smack compounded it. There is nothing in life like a good hard well-deserved spanking from a strong man. It is a very special experience.

  In the end I was too weak to fight or plead, I just lay over his knee while his hand spanked on and on and I simply cried and sobbed. Abruptly he stopped and stood me up again between his legs while I stood crying, my hands fluttering near my bare bottom trying to cool the heat. I couldn't touch my bottom, the stinging heat made it too sore, but after I had used the tissues he gave me I looked and it was unbelievable - such an angry red. David had done with his hand what Sir Charnock had needed that slipper to do.

  Of course David was kind to me after that and hugged and kissed me but not before he ga
ve me a stern warning. "Kate, I told you not to go near it but you disobeyed and now I've spanked you. Do it again and I will give you a real thrashing so that you won't sit for a week. You know I mean that don't you?"

  My little, "Yes David," satisfied him.

  It is very hard to describe how being spanked like that by David made me feel. I know how I should have felt. I should have felt humiliated, outraged at his arrogance and the assumption that as woman I could be treated like that. I should have perhaps complained to the police of assault or at the very least broken off our relationship. I didn't feel like that or do either of those things. I felt a strange sense of satisfaction that I had met a man who fulfilled my idea of what a man should be like. I hated the spanking but loved both his reasons for doing it and that he had the courage to do it and not apologise afterwards.

  Chapter 21

  Now that should have been that shouldn't it? Any sensible girl would keep her nose out of his secret project and not test the threat. True, but I was extremely curious both about what he was doing and if I did get caught whether he would make good on his threat. So I decided to take a peek but hoped not to get caught. I knew that at lunchtime he left the yard and walked along to a local café where he got a take-away sandwich and a coffee. One lunchtime I hid at the entrance to the old boat yard and waited until I saw David walk by. Then I scuttled across to his secret project. I was just lifting the cover and saw a shiny curved white thing and then David's voice made me jump.

  "Just what do you think you're doing?"

  What answer could I give to that? 'Oh just looking for my pet mouse' simply wouldn't do it. I tried, "Er...nothing," but he just pointed up to his lean-to base and said nothing.

  I walked up towards it, my heart hammering like mad. I know what a serious correction feels like and I guessed that whatever David did would be on that scale. Of course I could just walk off out of the boatyard and out of his life. Yeah, right! I'm sure some girls would as this life is not for everyone, but not me, I obeyed.

  We got into his base and I turned nervously to look at him.

  "Take off that coat, then your skirt, tights and knickers. Quickly now."

  I obeyed again, shivering in the cold room that isn't really an office, just a place for tools and diagrams.

  "Now put yourself against that wall with your hands on your head and don't move or make a sound until I get back."

  For a mad moment I thought he was going to get his sandwich and coffee. Clearly he must have spotted me hiding and not gone to the café, but he wasn't gone long enough. I didn't turn round though. I realised his threat had been a real one and I was now going to really get it just like an Accountability session.

  Finally I heard, "Turn around."

  David looked very stern indeed and was carrying a length of some piece of wood. I think it was beech and was about the dimensions of one of those school metre sticks except it was longer. He pulled out that rickety chair into the middle of the space and ordered, "Bend over that and hold the seat."

  Chapel Island has taught me obedience and compliance during correction so I bent over, desperately scared as I always am when being punished. There was no gap, no warning, no drum roll. The second I had hold of the seat there was a mighty blow across my bottom which made me scream out with shock at how much it hurt.

  I shot to my feet grabbing my bum but David simply said, "Bend over and don't jump up again. You're getting nineteen."

  The next one wasn't as bad but each stroke as it landed left a band of burning and smarting, different to a caning but just as bad. Each crack of that wood across my bottom had me wriggling violently and it only took four strokes to have me in floods of tears. It really hurt, that thrashing, each stroke making the ones that went before come alive all over again. Soon my whole bottom was horribly painful and each stroke had me wriggling so much David had to keep pausing. Finally the last one cracked down viciously and I was allowed to stand and given tissues. When I sorted out my face a bit I craned round to look at my bum. It was one mass of corrugations all in violent reds and purples and clearly going to be horrible bruising for days ahead.

  I wanted to be hugged and cuddled then, but no my punishment was not ended. "Face to the wall, hands on head and do not move or make a sound. I'm going to get my take-away now."

  I stood facing a brick wall with paint smears on it, my hands on my head and my whole bottom one blazing hot throb. My arms began to ache he was gone so long but I never moved although terrified he would have a visitor who would discover me like that.

  When he came back he had bought coffee, sandwich and a cake for me but first he cuddled me which I really needed. He put a heater on and I was allowed to stand near it but not dress though I was allowed to eat and drink. Finally I was allowed to get dressed but with a warning.

  "What you did Kate was deliberate and planned disobedience. Now you've been punished but I want to make sure that lesson is learned. I'm going to let your bottom calm down but in a week I am going to put you over my knee and spank you again."

  After that little speech I got a long comforting cuddle while I babbled apologies and promises. David was right, sitting was really hard for several days after that punishment. Somehow that triggered something else. I could not postpone meeting David's parents any longer without making him suspicious or offending them, so it was arranged for me to join them for lunch that coming Sunday. They were a bit of an old-fashioned traditional family and his mum cooked a proper old fashioned Sunday roast each week.

  I thought hard about meeting them. His dad would probably be OK just seeing that I was not a vacuous tart but his mum would be the one to watch. I put myself in her shoes - her special son, her only child, and along comes this nineteen-year old floozy who wants to take him away from her. Yes she was going to be ready to hate me, so I prepared well for our first meeting. I don't wear much make up (don't need it) but put on even less. I wore modest earrings and very little other jewellery, a pretty but modest skirt with a matching blouse and a warm top over and sensible shoes with a modest heel. Not dowdy, but not a glamour girl either, but the sort of girl a mother could trust.

  One thing mixing with so many older and wealthy people on Chapel Island has taught me is just to be myself. I don't try to put on any airs or graces or be something I'm not. It had worked well for me so I was going to go and just be my own self.

  We arrived rather early and David's mother was still very busy in the kitchen. His dad was warm and welcoming but his mother was stiff and wary. We stood in the kitchen, the four of us, an uneasy watchfulness all round. Only David's dad seemed relaxed and without any consultation he said to David, "Come and see the progress I've made with that new vegetable bed. It's almost done now." Then they were gone. I wondered if he had done that deliberately.

  At home if mum had been cooking and was far from finished I'd just stick an apron on and pitch in so I decided to do just that. I took an apron off the hook and pitching in, began helping prepare vegetables. She looked very anxious but I just carried on and knew I had to say something. Fortunately the God of Good Sense visited my tongue.

  "How lovely to see David getting on so well with his dad."

  It was the perfect thing to say and she just launched off into a long thing about how wonderful David was, how wonderful his dad was, and how, apart from a couple of sticky years in his teens, how well he got on with his dad. By the time she finished the meal was ready and we had worked terribly well together so she was much more relaxed. I had seen her giving me sideways glances and had been careful to do things her way.

  We called the men to come in but they were having a beer and took an age, She suddenly blurted out what was obviously on her mind, "So are you two getting married then?"

  I looked at her and gave a straight simple reply, "I think I'm a bit young to be talking about marriage, don't you? We're getting on very well but I have three years of university to go. Hopefully David will be nearby but we will take it slowly. He's not so old we
can't afford to wait, don't you think?"

  Well you should have seen the approval on her face. I was definitely getting A star from her to the point that when David teased me at the meal about my curiosity (no he didn't mention the spankings) she weighed in with, "Now you leave Kate alone David. You're very lucky getting a good sensible girl like her to look at you." His dad gave me a look and a quick wink. After that I was always welcome and she was unfailingly nice to me.

  The day after my successful meeting with his parents David told me to come and see him at the yard for my spanking. Did I go? Of course I did. I went, took off everything below the waist, and went over his knee and he spanked me good and hard until I was wailing and crying without restraint.

  Claire had been most unsympathetic when she saw my bum after that whacking with the wood. "I think you're lucky. Most women with your desires end up with Neanderthal brutes who simply knock them about. You've got Mr Perfect-For-You." She was even less sympathetic after my spanking, "Well? What did you expect? You did push it didn't you."

  ---oOo---

  David went back to his mysterious project and I went back to mine convinced there had to be an answer there somewhere. In the end I found it. It was going over someone's telephone records as part of my work that did it. I suddenly thought about that lawyer on Gibraltar. He must be taking orders from someone and suppose it was by phone, maybe I could find something from that.

  It took me a while, a lot of bluffing and a few lies to obtain copies of the phone records from the telephone company. I had them sent to me at work and guessed the lawyer would never know and even if he did it would take a fair while to realise where they had gone. Finally I printed them off so I could scribble notes, and began looking through them. It took me exactly two minutes. Chapel Island has, for reasons best known to the telephone company, got its own dialling code; perhaps it is easier with it being an island. There on the list were dozens of calls all to a Chapel Island number, and I noted, the same number each time. I accessed the island directory. The number wasn't listed at the House of Guardians, any of the leisure sites or the Island Hall, so I checked the residential directory. It wasn't listed at all. A secret number. That had to be significant. I kept that information to myself for a good many days, puzzling how to find out whose number it was. I could of course simply ring it and see who answered, but supposing I didn't know the voice? Where would that take me?