S is for Spanking

‘Ackland, Wendy?’

The red-haired girl raised her hand and Mr Blue made a mark on his clipboard.

‘Atkinson, Stacey?’

‘Sir … I mean, yes, I’m here.’

‘Sir will do nicely, or Mr Parker. That goes for the rest of you too. Respect is a vital part of leadership, and you will show me respect. Maybe you’ll earn mine, maybe not. OK, Graham Boothe?’

He carried on through the alphabet while I did my best to hide behind Paul, who was considerably wider than me and taller too. I knew it was hopeless, but that didn’t stop me wanting to postpone my fate. Then he reached the Fs.

‘Fisher, Juliette?’

I let out a gasp, completely unintentional and the tiniest fraction of a second before I realised that there was no reason at all to think it would be my Juliette Fisher, but it was already too late. Mr Blue, or rather Mr Parker, had moved a step aside to see who he thought had answered.

‘Fisher, Juliette?’

He was looking right at me and could hardly fail to realise who I was. I managed a sheepish smile in response to his brief glare of annoyance, but he quickly mastered himself.

‘Are you Juliette Fisher?’

‘No. Sorry.’

He shook his head.

‘There’s always one. Haynes, Sam?’

I was blushing hot as he moved on. Evidently Juliette Fisher wasn’t there, and nor were two others. Parker had obviously introduced everybody to the camp while outside, as he launched straight into a sort of pep talk.

‘Three missing. They go down as late. That’s how we do things here. You’re late, you lose. We take no prisoners and we make no exceptions. Everybody is equal, and that means equal. If you girls can’t keep up, tough. If you’re too weak, or too fat, or too useless to make the grade, tough. We want winners, not whingers. What do we want?’

Nearly everybody echoed his remark, even Stacey, but not me, while Paul seemed to have found something more interesting outside the window, possibly a cloud. Beforehand he’d never been more than a vague shape around the building, but I couldn’t help feeling sympathy, as of the people I knew there he alone seemed to resent the place. Some were even standing with legs braced apart and their hands clasped behind their back, as if they really were on parade, including Chad, Daniel, and Stacey, although she at least had the decency to look embarrassed and relax a little when I caught her eye. Parker turned to a new page on his clipboard and carried on.

‘Okey dokey, let’s get things together. First off, I want all mobile phones, laptops and any other gadgetry you have with you handed in, and that means now. I know you’re busy people, but I want you focused and I want you relying on yourselves, not on technology. My colleagues here are Mr Straw and Sergeant Reynolds, who will collect everything in, and I do mean everything.’

The two assistants moved forward as he carried on.

‘Second, this is a team exercise, so we form teams. Teams, not individuals, that’s what matters, and that’s why each of you is going to be given a letter. That’s your letter and your name for the duration. It’s what I’ll call you by and it’s how you’ll appear on the rosters and on the results boards, so learn it. Use your ordinary name and you get marked down. Team leaders will be A, B, C and D, each one leading a team of the same name. We put the girls together, but otherwise we go in reverse order of salary. That’s reverse order, which ought to put the bigheads in their place. I have your CVs and I have your individual company reports, so let’s see then …’

There was a stir in the ranks, some looking unhappy, others pleased, a few of the real army types holding their position without showing emotion. I for one was grateful, sure that my good position would save me from the job of team leader for the girls. Parker seemed to be having a little difficulty working things out, but finally began once more.

‘OK then, tail end Charlie, bottom of the heap is … O, Lucy Salisbury.’

Every single person in the room turned to look at me. I found myself responding with an embarrassed smile, and wondering if I really did receive the highest salary of all, or if Parker knew the implications of calling a girl O and had picked me out on purpose. It seemed likely, especially as several of the men were considerably older than me, and I found my sense of resentment flaring up, as well as fear. I told myself not to be silly, and that even if he had deliberately named me after a heroine notorious for accepting sexual indignities it didn’t mean he could treat me that way, but that didn’t stop me feeling on edge.

Stacey was G and Wendy Ackland was E, which left the absent Juliette Fisher as A and the women’s team leader. I’d already known we’d be in the same hut, and once Parker had finished his talk we gathered outside, talking formally until safely out of hearing, when Stacey spoke out.

‘I’m from an army family, but I’m not putting up with this pseudo-military bullshit. I’m Stacey, and as far as I’m concerned you’re Lucy and Wendy, at least when nobody else is listening.’

Wendy and I were quick to agree, although I was more concerned with our team leader, and hoping she’d turn out to be small and meek. Even having to take orders from somebody called Juliette Fisher was going to be difficult for me, at least at first, because just to hear the name had brought back all my old feelings with a vengeance. If it really was her, I was in trouble, no matter how much she’d changed or how she felt, because deep down I was still in love with her.

We were in Hut Eight, the furthest from Assembly and quite a way from the three male huts. It was much like the abandoned one I’d investigated, but carpeted, with four beds to either side, each with its own chair, along with two huge chests of drawers and a single, ancient convection heater. That was it, and Wendy immediately voiced my own misgivings.

‘Where’s the bathroom? Don’t tell me we have to go outside to use the loo?’

She’d already thrown her things down on the nearest bed and I chose the one opposite as Stacey answered her.

‘There’s a ladies’ shower block. The huts don’t have any plumbing.’

‘Oh God. Why did I let myself get talked into this?’

I was asking myself the same thing, and quietly cursing Mr Scott as I unpacked and made my area as homely as I could. Stacey had taken the bed next to mine, while Wendy seemed very easy going, making me wonder if it would be possible to get away with at least playful intimacy. There was a vulnerability to Wendy, with her fragile build and pale, freckled skin, which I was sure would appeal to Stacey, while with the door locked and the curtains across the windows we’d be in a little world of our own, opening up all sorts of intriguing possibilities. Stacey had other concerns.

‘I don’t know about you two, but I am not spending two weeks without a drink, especially cooped up here. They want it military, so they can have it military. Who’s for Operation Merlot?’

As she spoke she’d spread out a map on the floor. I crowded close, as did Wendy, tummy down with her shoes off and her legs kicked up. We’d soon located our own position, and the three nearest pubs, which included The Plough. Stacey began to explain her strategy, first telling Wendy about the incident with Parker the night before, then putting her finger on the map where it showed a village in a valley beyond the camp.

‘It’s no good just telling him to get stuffed and walking out, as it will go on our reports, so we have to be sneaky. We know Mr Parker likes a drink too, so the safest thing to do is for two of us to go and fetch what we need while the third stays here to make excuses for the others. This is Venncott, which is about six miles by road but less than two as the crow flies, so we’re not likely to be recognised. As long as we stick to the woods there’s no reason anybody should see us at all. Hiding contraband isn’t going to be a problem, even if there are hut searches. We just use the woods. Lunch is in an hour and a half, so I suggest we go.’

Wendy looked doubtful.

‘What, now? We’re supposed to be mingling and getting to know each other.’

I shook my head.

‘We’re supposed to be a team. Let’s act like one. We’ll go running together, around the fence, find a place to nip through and one of us can keep an eye out while the others go down to the pub.’

Stacey knew exactly what I was thinking and Wendy could see the plan made sense. We all had running kit and were soon changed and ready to go, looking keen as we jogged down the track and into the woods. Several people saw us go, but none followed and we’d soon skirted the open area of the airfield to where the ground fell away in a steep-sided valley. I’d hoped the fence wouldn’t be strong any more, and sure enough, we found a way underneath. Wendy stayed put and Stacey and I began to make our way down towards the river. I waited until we were deep in among the trees before stopping where a small beech had come down to make a convenient seat. Stacey didn’t need any further encouragement and was in my arms immediately, first kissing me and then allowing her hands to stray to my breasts. I hadn’t bothered with a bra and my top was soon up and her mouth fastened to one nipple as I hugged her to me. As usual I’d given in to her desire and she seemed to want me nude, so I stood up, allowing her to peel my top off over my head and pull down my shorts and panties. As I stepped free I was left in nothing but trainers and socks, which felt deliciously naughty and free in the warm sun, and even nicer because she was still dressed. She gave my bottom a few gentle swats, just to keep me on my toes, before sitting down on the tree trunk to push her own shorts and knickers to her ankles. I got down on my knees in the leaf mould, to bury my face between her thighs and lick her to ecstasy while I played with myself, a brief but delicious moment made all the better for the feeling of doing something illicit.

Our bad behaviour had left Stacey in a mischievous mood and she made me climb down the next hundred yards of the slope in the nude, leaving me flustered and aroused once more. I was only allowed to dress when we were dangerously close to the edge of the trees and in sight of the pub, a pretty, old-fashioned building set beside the tiny river. The sign was just legible, showing that it was called the Venncott Arms.

The sun was now high and hot, so as soon as we arrived we ordered a glass of lager each and took them out to the beer garden. A girl was sitting at one of the tables, alone, her back to us, her dark hair cut short, a girl much like Stacey in build, while her look and something in the way she held herself were disturbingly familiar. I felt my heart jump, told myself not to be ridiculous and then found my suspicions confirmed as she turned. It was Juliette Fisher, my Juliette Fisher.

‘Lucy? Lucy Salisbury?’

I tried to speak, but could only manage a gulping noise. Her eyes flicked to Stacey, then back to me as she went on.

‘It’s me, Lucy, Juliette. What are you doing here? Was that you coming down the slope just now? Who’s your friend? Hi.’

She was smiling at Stacey, her eyes full of mischief, and I wondered if we’d been more exposed than I realised as we came through the trees. I was blushing hot on the instant, and hotter still as Stacey tried to come to my rescue.

‘You’re Juliette Fisher, aren’t you? Lucy’s told me all about you. I’m Stacey. We’re on the same course, up at the old airfield on the hill, Camp Aspiration.’

‘You are? That is the best news I’ve had in weeks, years even! What’s it like? I’ve been dreading it, but my boss insisted I go, the common little toad.’

‘It’s not that bad, a bit military for some, perhaps, but we’re planning to get around that. You’re our team leader, by the way, so I hope you don’t mind us smuggling in some drink? There’s no alcohol allowed.’

‘No alcohol allowed? No, I don’t mind. I insist. But never mind that. You two have to be together? Trust you, Lucy! You should have known her, Stacey, back when …’

They carried on, chatting as if they’d known each other for years as I struggled with my feelings. Just to be in Juliette’s presence was making me weak, stripping away all the confidence I’d built up over the years. I could barely suppress the sense of adoration building inside me and found myself desperately eager to please, while the easy way she got on with Stacey only made things worse. They’d had me blushing from the start, and we’d barely sat down with our drinks before Juliette asked a question that turned my mild pink flush to blazing scarlet.

‘Am I going nuts, or when you two came down through the woods, was Lucy in the nude?’

Stacey just laughed.

‘Yes, she was. I thought it would be fun to make her go bare for a bit, but we didn’t know people would be able to see!’

Juliette laughed in turn, cold and clear and cruel, just the way I remembered.

‘I don’t suppose anybody else did, and I wasn’t even sure what I’d seen, until you came out at the bottom of the woods. I might have known it would be you, Lucy!’

I was smiling, pathetically grateful for her attention, exactly as I’d always been, but both she and Stacey were oblivious, Juliette carrying on blithely.

‘Yup, starkers in the woods, that’s Lucy’s style. She’s never been able to keep her clothes on for five minutes. So is this camp up on the hill?’

‘Yes. This is the nearest pub. In fact, we ought to get a move on. Our friend Wendy’s waiting for us and we need to be back for lunch.’

‘Why don’t I give you a lift? I passed a Co-Op on the main road. You can call your friend.’

‘No we can’t. We had to hand in our phones.’

‘What? How am I going to survive with no phone? Why doesn’t Lucy come with me then, and we’ll get the drink?’

I made to speak, knowing exactly what she was after, but Stacey didn’t hesitate.

‘Sure, why not? I imagine you two have a lot of catching up to do.’

She swallowed what remained of her drink, kissed me and made for the little bridge that crossed the river, breaking into a jog on the far side. I watched as she started up the hill, already full of guilt and arousal, chagrin and excitement, all muddled together for the thought of what Juliette undoubtedly wanted. She was as cool as ever.

‘She’s nice. How long have you been together?’

‘We’re not together … not really. We just … I have a boyfriend, back in London.’

‘A boyfriend, you, Lessie Lucy!?’

‘Why shouldn’t I have a boyfriend?’

‘Well you never showed the slightest interest before.’

‘No, I always liked boys. And anyway, things have changed.’

Even to myself I sounded sulky, and she just grinned.

‘Not that much. You’re still stripping off in the woods. Do you remember where we used to swim at Marnhoe? You’d always be the first to go naked, and the last to get dressed.’

‘You used to strip me! And … and make me do rude things to get my clothes back.’

She just laughed, making my blushes hotter than ever, but I couldn’t help turning my mind back to the little quarry where we used to swim together. I remembered trying not to giggle as she and her friends held me down while I was divested of my skirt and blouse, my knickers and bra, then thrown in, stark naked. And afterwards, begging to be allowed my clothes back and being made to kiss Juliette’s bottom, only to be refused my knickers and to end up walking back bare under my skirt, terrified that a puff of wind would expose my shame to the world. Juliette drew a long sigh.

‘Those were the days. I thought it would always be like that, and look at me now, one more rat on the treadmill. Oh well, at least I’ve got you, for a while. Let’s go.’

Her glass was empty, but mine was nearly full and I swallowed what I could before following her to a red BMW. She didn’t bother to put her seatbelt on, as heedless of both safety and authority as ever, and as I strapped up she gave me one of her brief, contemptuous glances. I could remember her driving, and was feeling nervous before we’d even got through the village, but she put her foot down hard the moment we were on the open road, only to slow down a little.

‘Let’s take it easy. It’s not the end of the world if we don’t get there for lunch.’

‘The instructions said to arrive before ten o’clock. You’ve already been penalised for being late.’

‘What are they going to do, give me a spanking?’

Her voice was full of derision, but just the mention of that awful word had my heart hammering in my chest and the blood rushing back to my face. She didn’t see, her eyes fixed to the road as we took a long corner.

‘No, they’re not, are they? They’re going to put a black mark against my name or make some comment about a negative attitude on my report. I don’t care. Do you?’

‘Not all that much, no, but I’d rather not cause any unnecessary fuss.’

‘That’s my Lucy, always the careful one, but always the naughty one too. Did you ever get caught for anything? No, I don’t think you did, but you got punished, didn’t you? Do you remember how I used to spank you?’

I nodded, unable to deny the truth but not wanting to admit just how important those memories had been to me or how much influence she’d had.

‘Does Stacey do it? I bet she does, over her knee with your panties pulled down, just the way you like it, or is she really stern with you?’

This time I couldn’t hold back.

‘She spanks me. She … she doesn’t really understand, but she enjoys doing it, now.’

‘You trained her to spank you? Wonderful! Only you, Lucy, only you. How about the cane? I used to love to cane you. Do you remember that time I did it in front of Emily and Claire? How you squealed, and then I made you wait a week before giving you the last five! Does Stacey cane you?’

‘She has once, but she’s not normally that harsh with me. She’s sweet.’

‘It doesn’t sound as if she knows how to handle you at all. What does she like then?’

There was no mistaking the arousal in her voice, and she had me in a state of toe-curling embarrassment, but I couldn’t stop myself as I went on.

‘She’s very physical. She likes to play fight and hold me down. She’s strong too, stronger than you.’

I hadn’t been able to resist the dig, but Juliette merely gave a doubtful snort and I found myself backing down immediately.

‘Or maybe not, and she’s not really very experienced. It was her first time, with me.’

Juliette gave a low purr, another reaction I was all too familiar with. I didn’t respond, wondering what would happen if she made a move on Stacey. Experience told me that poor Stacey was likely to end up on her knees, or over Juliette’s, but there was also a possibility that I’d be the one on the receiving end, from both of them, a thought that made me shiver. I couldn’t imagine Juliette taking anything other than an aggressive, dominant role, although the thought of her wriggling and kicking over Stacey’s lap as she was spanked gave me a sudden stab of vindictive pleasure.

We’d been following the river, with dense woods on the opposite side of the road. A Forestry Commission sign came into view and Juliette immediately slammed the brakes on, slowing the car just enough to let her take the corner safely. The trees closed in above us over a gravel track, forming a gloomy tunnel into the wood. I knew full well what was going on, and that I wouldn’t be able to resist her for a moment, but that didn’t stop me asking, or keep the note of panic out of my voice.

‘Where are we going, Juliette?’

‘Somewhere I can give you what you need, for old times’ sake.’

‘But I don’t want to be punished! Besides, you can’t mark me. What if Stacey saw? And Wendy, the other girl. We’re sure to have to shower together, and they’ll see!’

I was whining, and it sounded pathetic even in my own ears, but I’d sealed my fate, effectively admitting that she could do as she pleased with me as long as she didn’t mark my skin. Not that she cared anyway, as she’d never had any time for the little mind games I played with myself in order to justify my surrender, except that she sometimes found them amusing.

The track was long and straight, ending in a circle of gravel wide enough to turn a lorry and completely hedged in by tall pines. Juliette swung the car around, parking so that we could look back the way we’d come. A single tug on the lever that controlled my chair and I was suddenly on my back. Now there was no mistaking her intentions at all, her eyes glittering with cruelty and mischief as she looked down at me.

‘I have missed you so badly, Lucy. Roll over then, onto your front, and stick that sweet little bottom up in the air.’

I obeyed, for all that I was pouting as I did it, turning onto my belly before lifting my hips, my head burning with chagrin and resentment even as I made my bottom available to her. She either didn’t realise or didn’t care, reaching out to stroke the taut blue material of the seat of my shorts and shaking her head as if in wonder at the shape and texture of my bottom.

‘You are lovely, so neat, so firm, but you always were so, so spankable.’

She began to smack, just hard enough to make my cheeks shiver, all the while with her gaze feasting on my bottom as if she was going to eat me. I pushed my hips up a little higher, unable to stop myself enjoying her attention, at which her fingers slipped between my legs, to stroke the bulge where my shorts were pulled tight over my cunt. What with running, and playing with Stacey in the woods, and what Juliette had been saying to me, I knew I was already wet, and exactly how I’d look from behind, with my sex lips making a horseshoe-shaped damp patch in the crotch of my shorts. Juliette could hardly fail to notice, or to comment.

‘Soaking, as usual. You make me laugh, Lucy, always pretending you don’t want to play and all the while you’re dripping wet.’

I didn’t even try to explain, because she’d never really understood my feelings and probably never would, unless she got it herself. That was never going to happen, not between me and her, because just to be with her made me want to grovel at her feet, never mind when she started to get dirty with me. Now that I had my bottom lifted and my cunt had been touched I was hers, and there was no resistance in me at all as she took hold of the waistband of my shorts.

‘Let’s pop these down then, shall we? I know you like me to have you bare.’

She began to pull, slowly easing my shorts down over my bottom to expose me to her gaze: the swell of my cheeks and the split between, the flesh of my bottom and the tight pink dimple of my anus, the soft crease where my buttocks met my thighs and the pouted lips of my cunt. I had no knickers on, and I knew she’d comment, but that did nothing to dilute my embarrassment as she saw.

‘Still running around with no panties on, I see, Lucy. No bra either by the look of it. Don’t you ever wear any underwear?’

As she spoke she pushed up my top, adding the exposure of my breasts to my woes. I was bare in front of Juliette Fisher, again, and I was no more capable of fighting the feelings she provoked in me than I had been all those years ago, perhaps weaker still, as when she began to stroke the skin of my back and bottom with her nails I couldn’t hold back a sigh. She continued to explore, and when she spoke again her voice was soft.

‘That’s better, isn’t it? I’ve missed you so much, Lucy, you darling little slut, but I see you’ve been getting your share. You’re bruised.’

‘Stacey spanked me with a hairbrush last night.’

‘What for?’

‘For being stuck up.’

‘I can understand that. You always were a bit of a madam, weren’t you? I bet she’s rough, a big, strong girl like that. Did it hurt?’

‘Yes, a lot, but not as much as the cane, not as much as you used to hurt me. She’s nice, she spanks me off.’

‘You have got her well trained, haven’t you? You’re a dirty slut, Lucy, and you need to be punished.’

There was no use denying it, with my bare bottom pushed up to the touch of her nails. As she began to spank again I was moaning in pleasure, but that wasn’t her intention.