by Susan Thomas
There was a collective gasp and the family began talking among themselves. Madge, who clearly wanted him to come, looked at Kathy who looked for guidance to her husband.
"He is your son, Matthew. You and Madge must decide and we must all abide by your decision."
The pleading in Madge's eyes was apparent to all, and Matt finally spoke saying, "We are having a big family get together. You can come."
Kathy clung to Jack's arm and neither moved as the buzz of conversation flowed around the family. It was clear that not all wanted to see him. Martin in particular looked displeased. It also became clear that Kevin must have been close by when he phoned for it was only a few minutes before he arrived. His father and mother greeted him rather stiffly though his mother clearly wanted to hug and kiss him but was restrained by the whole stiff atmosphere.
Matt took him around the family introducing him to those he didn't know. Only Colum Murphy shook his hand but there were so many and it took a while. Kathy stood quietly watching this man who was her father. She could see he looked depressed and beaten by life. She judged him to be weak in character though physically strong, but not unpleasant. Finally Matt came to Jack and Kathy.
"This is our assistant pastor, Jack Lytham, and his wife Kathy." He paused as Jack shook hands with Kevin and her father turned to her. "Kathy is also your daughter."
Kevin stepped back as if he had been struck. His face, already white and strained, lost all colour and the man looked like he was ready to collapse. Kathy looked at him steadily, her face expressionless.
Matt continued rubbing salt into his son's wounds. "You didn't give us her mother's maiden name or any address for her, so we were never able to track her down to bring her into the family. Her mother returned to England where her own family rejected her. That you married a resourceful and determined woman is all that saved them. God brought Kathy to study at the college and we discovered each other."
Kevin looked around wildly. "Where is Annie?"
"My mother died a year ago before I enrolled in the college."
Kevin looked even worse at this news and he looked around at his father. "I'll leave. I'm sorry, real sorry. Best I leave now."
Jack stepped forward and put a firm hand on his shoulder. "No you won't. There has been enough running away. If you want to repent and return to your family and God's then you must start now. Confess and explain, first to your parents, and then your brother and sisters. It is up to them if they forgive you or not. Kathy and I will go and meet the others and then when you have done with them you can come to Kathy with whatever you have to say. You owe that much to her if not more. I cannot and will not attempt to influence her decision regarding you but she will listen to what you have to say. Go now and face your family."
Jack turned and led Kathy away to meet those she had yet to meet properly. Everyone began to talk loudly and Spencer put on some country music. Kevin sat down with his parents and the tears began to flow.
Kathy looked up at Jack and thought that she could never love him more than she did at this moment. She felt supported and protected as she snuggled into her strong husband, praying that they would have many years together to find out if she was right.
Also by Susan Thomas...
The Last Spanking Story
Miles LaPage, world leading spanking author and playwright, has simply run out of ideas and decides he has penned his last spanking story. As he has often done before, he is soon striding out across the moors, but when a dense mist descends he ends up losing his bearings and falls down a steep muddy bank. He follows a path but eventually realises he is lost when he is suddenly approached by a strangely dressed policeman. Sometime later he is introduced to Sir George Armitage, who explains that their village became frozen in time in 1937, following a severe electrical storm. None of the villagers are able to leave and all roads somehow lead back to the village.
Miles also learns that the village employs a strict regime of corporal punishment with sentences handed out by a 'court' held in the village hall. Those found guilty of wrongdoing are subject to the cane and birch and some are further placed in a pillory the following morning with their bottoms bared and on the receiving end of a strap or additional spanks from any of the public so inclined.
After several failed attempts to get away from the village, Miles agrees to take the job of village secretary, responsible for recording the events at court and for the ordering of goods. Despite being a writer of spanking fiction, he is appalled at the severity of some of the punishments, especially those given to some of the younger villagers, which he considers to be both unnecessary as well as cruel. Later, Miles discovers a young girl, Sophie, who has been sleeping in one of his bedrooms. It seems that the house Miles occupies was her former home until her mother died and she was placed in the care of an extremely unpleasant woman, Madge Pendle, who runs the dairy and mistreats her.
As Miles becomes increasingly unhappy with the cruel village customs, he intercedes to prevent two young girls from being punished and incurs the wrath of the policeman. Things take a further turn for the worse when he is confronted by Sophie's enraged foster-mother. The following day, he is visited by the constable and two beadles, who demand that he and Sophie come with them to court where they are likely to face the birch. It's time for drastic action...
Erin's Visit
Instead of going to University, Erin decides to go to America and stay with her Aunt Nicola and Uncle Jack, and work at the family business. Erin's mother has some misgivings as her churchgoing sister and brother-in-law live in a strongly religious area. Undeterred, Erin makes the trip, and discovers that she is now in a totally different environment and culture - because here in this devout Christian community, spankings are the norm. She finds that the church endorses physical chastisement and all the neighbouring houses have a church-approved spanking paddle hanging up in their homes. Erin realises her status as an unspanked 18-year old may mean she may not be popular with the other girls - so she takes steps to sign up to receiving regular spankings from her Uncle Jack. This is a rite-of-passage tale for Erin, who begins to learn the meaning of traditional discipline. She starts a relationship with local boy Josh who comes from an extremely strict family, and as their relationship develops, Erin grows in confidence and maturity and also learns more about the community in which she lives.
Erin's Cousin
Eighteen-year-old Jessica has always been somewhat jealous of her cousin, Erin, who, although the same age, seems to do everything better than her, and she eventually grows to resent her. When Erin goes to stay with relatives in the United States, Jessica keeps in touch and gets to hear that she has agreed to accept a church based behaviour contract which involves her being spanked on a regular basis for any misdemeanours. Jessica decides that this is one area where she can compete with Erin and gets her parents to agree to spank her in a similar way. It's not long before she finds herself on the receiving end of her first bare bottom spanking when her father spanks and paddles her for poor results at college. Further spankings follow and later Jessica is surprised to find that her own mother is now also subject to chastisement in much the same way as herself. As the punishments continue, she begins to find that she is becoming a better person and what's more, no longer in the shadow of her cousin.
Spanking the Secretary's Bottom
When Helen takes a job as a secretary at the prestigious Lady Alice school she is shocked and intrigued to discover that the headmaster, Dr Croft, canes the upper sixth girls. As her fascination with corporal punishment grows, she manages to get the headmaster to punish her for her own misdeeds - to their mutual satisfaction.
When a lucrative job offer comes up in government, Helen takes it, and makes the acquaintance of eligible bachelor, Crispin. The two become close, and Helen soon finds that Crispin canes far harder than Dr Croft ever did! It is not long before she becomes a regular visitor at Crispin's family home. The wealthy upper class family is headed by Crispin's father, the
General, who takes discipline in the family very seriously, and does not hesitate to punish unacceptable behaviour.
Helen experiences two hard canings and a painful birching at the hands of the General. Yet in spite of the discipline, she feels more welcomed and loved by Crispin's family than by her own. As her relationship with Crispin deepens, a wedding is on the cards...
The Disciplined Women of Chapel Island
When 18-year-old Kate and her wealthy parents make yet another house move, this time to their luxury new home on Chapel Island, Kate senses from the outset that there is something both mysterious and exciting about the place. The island is beautiful, though somewhat unusual in that it has its own currency and a police and security force known as The Guardians - and it isn't long before Kate has her first encounter with them. Whilst exploring on her bicycle, she narrowly avoids colliding with a golf cart (the mode of transport on the island) and is later questioned by two Guardians who tell her that her mother will be informed.
Subsequently, Kate is puzzled when she notices that her mother has to go out and pay some kind of penalty, and on returning home is taken by her husband to his study where she later emerges rubbing her bottom. Kate's curiosity deepens and she follows her mother to the Accountability Suite in the House of the Guardians. As a result of Kate's investigations, she discovers that domestic discipline and corporal punishment are an accepted way of life on the island - and the reason Kate's parents chose to reside here. Under this regime, many infractions are dealt with publicly with all manner of spanking implements.
This is a rite of passage for Kate, who discovers that the ritual of such punishments excites her, and that excitement is carried through to her intimate relationships. When she breaks the rules, she is up for correction, and joins the other island women on stage, all naked and waiting for their punishment, which is often severe. But she is still inquisitive and discovers there is much subterfuge going on, with hidden cameras in her home. Why is she being spied on? Who can she trust? And who are 'The Five' who have control of everything that happens on Chapel Island? She finds out eventually, and becomes empowered...