Chapter 40: Charlotte’s Punishment

After being relieved of my watch duty by Captain Alfred, I went below for breakfast. Right away, I could tell that the mood was confusing. There was a certain excitement about the two new passengers we had picked up during the night. There was also a feeling of dread as Charlotte’s punishment hour drew near.

Roland had convinced Captain Alfred that he should not punish a child when he was angry and urged him to sleep on it. Her mother though, was livid at her actions which could have cost not only me, but the entire family their lives. She was insisting on punishment and the family standard for serious violations was a public paddling. And the more public, the better.

So, because of the mood, I gravitated towards our two guests a little more than normal. I was also hiding from Archara because I was afraid that as the primary offended person, she would expect me to take part in the punishment. But she never approached me, which left me feeling somewhat relieved.

Samantha and Leigh Ann were quick to pitch in and help clean the galley after breakfast. Their laughter told me that no one had filled them in on what was happening. So when we went to the bridge, I gave them the Cliff Notes version.

Leigh Ann, who had never been spanked in her life was appalled and wanted to shout at someone while Samantha took it in stride.

“I grew up with four brothers and two sisters and someone was always getting their backside tanned,” she explained.

Finally, the time drew nigh, and everyone was summoned to the galley. There, on one of the large three-foot-by-three-foot footstools from the cockpit lounge area was Charlotte in all her glory. Her hands were tied to the front corner feet of the footstool with her boobs hanging down the front of the stool. And her legs were spread and tied to the outside of the other end of the stool, leaving her ass gaping wide open at the audience.

Then out came the paddle. It didn’t look so large in Captain Alfred’s hands, and I could see that he had used this paddle a time or two before. He stood silently to his daughter’s side, just where she could see him, and waited. The last person to arrive was Archara and even after a night’s sleep, she was pissed!

“Alfred and I have always tried to be consistent and fair with our parenting and with our punishments. Because of the many benefits we enjoy, a certain amount of restraint and maturity have always been expected from our children. Along with a certain amount of leeway. However, it was always his practice before, and it has remained that way since I joined this family, that egregious behavior demands severe punishment. Hence, we use a form of corporal punishment, spanking with a wooden paddle on a bare behind in front of a congregation of those offended. We use the paddle because it does not leave welts or broken skin. We also use it because it hurts like the dickens, as our daughter is about to discover.”

“What Charlotte did was simply one of the most, if not the most, self-centered, egotistical acts of devilry that I have ever witnessed. Because she had a crush on Vivienne and was afraid that Daniel would cure her of her feeling for other girls, she used the radio to secretly turn Daniel in to the very authorities that we have worked and planned so hard to protect him from. And she did it knowing full well that Daniel could be killed in the process.”

“Alfred and I have decided that because her thoughtless actions almost got each of you killed, you will each give her bottom three hard swats. And if you fail to give them hard enough to suit me, you’ll be right beside her for the remainder of her punishment. Am I clear?”

No one argued with those instructions, I noticed. And poor little Charlotte was already shedding tears and hadn’t received a lick.

“Any questions?” she asked looking right at Leigh Ann. Then she nodded and Leigh Ann and Samantha left to return to a stateroom. Captain Alfred was not ready to let them roam the bridge alone just yet.

Then she nodded to Alfred.

Crack!

“Owwww,” Charlotte cried out.

Crack!

“Ohhhh, dadddddy Noooo!”

Crack!

“Owwwie! Owwwie”

Captain Alfred handed the paddle to his wife and left for the bridge. She then handed it to Carina. She was the only one who might be madder about Charlotte’s actions than Archara. I later heard Roland call it Mother Cub Syndrome.

Anyway, by the time she had delivered her three swats, Charlotte’s ass was glowing nicely. She then passed the paddle to Eileen, who added to the red glow with a sheen of perspiration that showed up across her behind. Roland and Walt followed the mothers, and then it was the teens.

Phillipe was unsure but excited. He actually missed the first time, striking near her hip. Archara made him do it over. In his embarrassment he may have swung a little too hard on the last one. Archara had Carina check her over, which also gave her a chance to calm a little before it was announced that her little brother would now take his turn.

I saw no evidence of family concern in his swats. They were precise, and hard. Next up was her sister Anna. And while Charlotte had not actually spanked Anna, she had witnessed Anna’s own punishment just last week. So needless to say, there was no soft undertones from Anna.

Mischa had also experienced the bad end of the paddle, so there was little compassion in her heart as well.

Hiromi was the one I thought might falter, but she struck three times in quick succession, neither giving an inch nor dragging it out.

And little Maura tried to outdo everyone, so much that Archara had to make her ease up just a little.

That left Vivienne, Archara, and me. Everyone else had left the salon. I waited to see who Archara would hand the paddle to next.

“Vivienne,” Archara said to the girl. “You were complicit in this from the start and although you did not participate in the atrocity, you were aware and told no one. I have decided that you shall receive three swats from me. Assume the position.”

That’s when I noticed that there was another stool beside Charlotte’s.

Vivienne had the good sense not to argue with an angry mother. She draped her body over the stool just as Charlotte was and reached for the legs.