Chapter 30: That Really Hurts

At Punishment the next day in front of all the other girls, Jacqui remembered that there are punishments that not even the most devout masochist can enjoy, or convert to sexual pleasure.

Martha briefly outlined Jacqui's "crimes", which amounted to risking Martha's income by letting a client nearly kill her, and upsetting said client because his experiment failed.

"The punishment will be three strokes of the thin cane for each offence," Martha intoned and Jacqui was truly amazed.

The thin cane was actually a tube about one eighth of an inch diameter woven from very fine wire; it was woven so tight that it was nearly rigid, so it didn't bend round the buttocks as it struck, but only made quite small marks. Six of the thin cane was nothing. The birch REALLY hurt, but even six of that wasn't too bad. Had Martha gone mad?

Then Martha changed everything by saying, "Lie on the floor with your legs up the side of the whipping bench and Jacqui screamed.

"No! No! Please Martha. Not on my feet. No!" she wailed but Martha was implacable.

"I said last night that even you would not enjoy this punishment. I take it from your reaction that it really works. I've never seen it, let alone received it, but I heard it works a treat on recalcitrant tarts. A very prosperous pimp told me that on Earth. Shall I add another stroke for not addressing me as Madame?"

Jacqui was on her knees now with her arms round Martha's legs begging and pleading incoherently to be allowed any other punishment but not that one.

"Get into position," said Martha, satisfied that at last that she had managed to get through to this most uncontrollable of her girls, even more satisfied that the others were watching and becoming thoroughly frightened.

When Jacqui didn't move, Martha signalled to Alf and Peter who lifted Jacqui and placed her as ordered. Alf shackled her feet to the bench and Peter took off her shoestockings. Jacqui was now crying uncontrollably and her pleas were totally incomprehensible. Martha thought she had probably had this punishment before and was clearly in mortal terror of having it again.

Martha laid the first stroke carefully and quite hard but not, she considered, very hard, along the length of Jacqui's left foot and watched in amazement as the foot started almost immediately to blister. Equally shocking was that Jacqui wet and shit herself with the pain and could not scream; could not breathe almost.

Martha immediately told Alf to free Jacqui and to carry her to her room where Violetta could tend the wound.

Kim, the Top Girl, observed to Martha, "I had never heard of that, but the sight of one stroke was enough for me. I hope you will reconsider the other five, Madame. Jacqui will not walk on that foot today, nor tomorrow either, I suspect."

Martha's reply was a curt, "No more this time," and she swept off to her office.

Later in the day, Martha went to see Jacqui and said, "You had had your feet thrashed before had you?"

"No, Madame," said Jacqui, "I only saw it done to someone and with a light cane across the foot. Three strokes on each foot and then they were made to walk away. I want to go away from here. Anywhere will do. Karl, a mine dormitory, anywhere. I cannot stay here thinking you might do that again. Even you can't be intending to give me five more of those."

"I can understand you feeling like that now," said Martha, "but think about it for a day or two and we'll talk again. Oh, and no, there will be no more in this punishment. I ought to have listened to myself when I told you off for trying things you didn't know about."