Chapter 18

Malka Chorno's final integration into the criminal community came much more quickly than anyone could have anticipated and from a completely unexpected source, the owner of the Socrates Club. As he watched Malka and admired her muscular cop's physique, an idea popped into his head. He decided to approach the former police officer about becoming a physical fitness instructor for the Club.

The Club's owner had heard predictions that winter would come early, which would force Danube City's criminals off the streets and seek refuge indoors. Many of them would lose any opportunity whatsoever to exercise, since no gym in Danube City admitted criminals as members. The Socrates Club's owner realized he easily could fill that need, since part of the Club's sprawling property included an empty armory. The building was a 300 year-old historical landmark and thus could not be torn down or renovated on the outside. The structure had sat empty for years, but now the Socrates Club could, with the simple installation of a heater and a new floor, convert it into a fitness center. The only element lacking was a criminal who knew how to conduct physical fitness training. That problem now was resolved with the addition of an ex-police officer to the club's clientele.

In the middle of September the Club owner called Vladim Dukov to relay his plan to offer a job to Malka. The former cop took a break from Victor Dukov's deliveries to see about the new position. The Club owner took her into the armory and discussed his idea.

"What I want is for the physical fitness program to be included in the Club's dues and room fees. It won't be a separate charge, because I know most of my clients couldn't afford a health club fee. But I think they'll come exercise if it doesn't cost them anything extra, and if they have a charismatic instructor. It won't cost me that much, since all I need to do is put in a floor and a heater, in a building I really can't use for anything else. If you agree to do this, what you do is up to you, as long as it's general fitness. It's your chance to stop being yelled at by that bicycle guy. You'll get to yell instead."

Malka quickly accepted the offer. She had plenty of time to give notice to Victor Dukov, since she still had to wait for the installation of the new floor. She also took advantage of the time to read over her old police training manuals and set up several exercise regimes for different tastes. She decided to set up two classes of general military exercises and one class of non-combative martial arts. Malka would lead the classes by exercising herself as she shouted commands. She would lead by example, showing her classes what she wanted with her own body.

The gym was ready at the end of September, just as the weather was becoming too cold for Kim and Malka to continue delivering messages for Victor. The first Saturday night of October Malka stood on the stage of the Socrates Club for the only time during her sentence to announce her exercise classes and her schedule. She concluded:

"I have taken the entire exercise program for the National Police Academy and adapted it for you. I will work with you in the same way my instructors worked with my class at the Academy. That means, don't expect me to be nice, because 'nice' is not how you get your body into proper shape. But I can guarantee my regimen will keep you fit and in better health. This is the chance for you not to become a bunch of fat slobs over the winter."

With that, Malka began her classes. Three times per day, six days per week, Malka's snarling voice could be heard on the street outside the old armory. Malka's classes started out full, but at the beginning many criminals came and left. By the end of the year the exercise groups had stabilized with a regular crowd. For the ones who stayed, Malka became something of a cult figure, the ill-tempered ex-police officer who now dedicated her life to helping anyone who cared to spend time with her get into top physical shape. Kim and Eloisa attended Malka's late afternoon sessions three times per week and always left completely exhausted. They jokingly referred to the armory as "Malka's torture chamber"

Malka became a totally different person when she was instructing her classes from any other time during her sentence as a criminal. Malka was very quiet and almost shy when she was among Tuko's friends, or with Victor Dukov, or with her Spokesman. The exercise sessions gave Malka the chance to be her old self again. In her classes she was boss, period. She had a clear idea what she wanted from her students and very quickly snapped at the ones not performing to her expectations. She pushed her classes mercilessly, but she led by example, exercising in front of her students during the sessions. As she shouted commands, Malka's sharp eyes scanned her group for anyone using poor technique. She didn't interrupt her class for errant students, but after class she worked one-on-one with anyone she noticed who was having problems doing the exercises properly. Malka's own body was in constant physical movement, pushed by the woman's incredible drive and determination.

The ex-cop managed to settle into her life as a criminal largely because of her unusual relationship with her young boyfriend Tuko. Malka came from a very strict and upright family of small farmers. Prior to her arrest she had dated the same man for years in the traditional manner. In every sense Malka had been a hard-core traditionalist, only to have her world disintegrate during the days following Kim's final switching. Malka realized the loss of her old life was not all bad, because now she could do something she couldn't have done in the past, simply live life for herself and enjoy the moment. She did not need to follow any formal protocol with Tuko. She could joke with him and touch him where she pleased. At a moment's notice the two could run upstairs to an intimacy room. They could experiment with different sexual positions and wrestle, something Malka would not have dreamt of doing with her old fiancée.

When it came to sex, Tuko and Malka were evenly matched. Both had very strong sexual urges and pent-up erotic desires. Tuko had a stronger drive and physical endurance than anyone Malka had ever slept with previously. For the first time in her life Malka had a man who could keep up with her craving for sexual gratification. Very quickly Tuko learned to be rough with Malka, because that was what she wanted. During sex he pushed hard when he entered her, grabbed her hair when he kissed her, and slapped her bottom hard when he wanted to position her for a new sexual posture. Malka was every bit as rough with Tuko. She dug her fingernails into his back or bottom during intercourse, frequently bit him, and grabbed his penis and squeezed it, looking at him with clinched teeth and flashing eyes, warning him he'd better become erect quickly ... or else. There were plenty of evenings that Malka and Tuko returned to the Club's main floor after sex with their bodies all marked up from their exertions. The other members of the group tried not to notice.

Dukov's teenaged daughter returned home one mid September afternoon with a bit of a surprise, a classmate from the United States. The girl's name was Jennifer Thompson and she was a high school exchange student spending a year abroad in Upper Danubia. Jennifer was living with a host family, who had sent their own daughter to live with Jennifer's parents in the US.

Jennifer was petite and quite pretty, with pale skin and short red hair. In the US had enjoyed sports and cheerleading. She freely admitted that the cheerleading had gotten her into a lot of trouble, as she ran wild with fellow cheerleaders and football players. Like Kim, in her high school Jennifer had been quite the party girl, which was why her parents decided to send her for a year abroad.

Jennifer was elated about going to Europe, where she had heard that societies were more liberal than even California, which was where she was from. She had not heard of Upper Danubia, but hey, Europe was Europe, so she expected to have a blast. No drinking age, lax drug laws, tattoos, raves ... what more could a 17-year-old want?

Jennifer's father had sent her to Upper Danubia knowing full-well what lay in store for his daughter. Yes, his little Jennifer would have a bit of a shock awaiting her when she started her high school in Danube City. Among the papers he signed was a release allowing Jennifer to receive corporal punishment while in school, if it proved necessary. Jennifer's parents gladly signed the release, and with that Jennifer was on her way to the airport.

Jennifer was somewhat taken aback by the conservative appearance of Danube City and its busy, but very quiet streets. The bars, discos and tattoo parlors she was expecting were nowhere in sight, but occasionally she did see a naked young person running around on foot or on a bicycle. Like Kim the year before, she wondered about that, but did not think to ask due to her lack of language. The only thing she enjoyed was swimming naked at her school pool, free from the hassle and discomfort of having to wear a swimsuit. However, that hardly made up for the lack of anything else exciting to do. She balked at her school uniform and her host family with their endless rules, formalities, and protocol. She didn't bother to study Danubian in her orientation classes and wrote angry letters home asking her father, what the hell was with this country ... I thought Europe would be fun ... this place totally sucks.

Jennifer's heart reserved a special resentment against Helga Tolkiv, the exchange program counselor at her school who always was telling her how to behave. Counselor Tolkiv was relatively young and quite attractive, but her long skirts, old-style braided hair, and tall statuesque figure made her a rather imposing woman. She spoke in a quiet, but bossy tone of voice, always using extremely correct English. She was Danubian to the core, very serious and obsessed with "honor". Counselor Tolkiv was Jennifer's main teacher, another aspect of her year abroad that grated on her.

Jennifer became popular in school, quickly making friends with several Danubian girls with similar personalities and interested in hearing about how wild life in the US was for high school students. Jennifer embellished a bit, as her classmates struggled to understand their American friend's stories given in English. Jennifer became the center of attention of the school's more rebellious girls and a growing source of concern for the school's teachers by the end of September. Both Counselor Tolkiv and the school principal began wondering how they could exert their authority over Jennifer and lessen her influence over her classmates. Finally it was Jennifer herself who provided the school authorities with a justification to make an example out of her in front of her peers.

In California Jennifer frequently had skipped class at her high school. No one thought anything of it because so many of her classmates did the same thing. No one in Jennifer's clique took school very seriously and the teachers were glad to be rid of the more troublesome students. Jennifer skipped class for the first time during the third week of the school year to smoke a cigarette in a nearby park. Her classmates marveled at her reckless courage, but Counselor Tolkiv gave her a very stern lecture about the need to stay in school.

"You are dishonoring yourself, the exchange program, and your teachers with your behavior. I trust you shall not dishonor us again."

Jennifer rolled her eyes. That act of disrespect earned Jennifer an hour standing in the corner while the teacher graded some papers. Unfortunately the lesson did not sink in.

Jennifer skipped class again the following week, but this time the consequences were far worse. As she sat smoking in the park, a police officer noticed Jennifer's high school uniform and detained her. He demanded to know which school she had come from, getting a response in heavily accented Danubian that she had been let out early by her exchange program coordinator. The story sounded unlikely to the cop, so finally he handcuffed her and took her to several nearby schools to find out where she needed to be. Jennifer was incensed at being paraded around in handcuffs, not yet realizing there was much worse to come.

Finally the officer led Jennifer to the correct high school and into the director's office. Jennifer could tell the principal was furious. He called Counselor Tolkiv to his office and berated her in front of both Jennifer and the cop. The woman gave the girl a hostile look, angry that Jennifer, after having been warned, was responsible for making her lose honor. On top of all that, the exchange student had committed a criminal offense by lying to the policeman and was facing arrest. Counselor Tolkiv stood at attention in front of the two men and addressed them in Danubian, after giving the American another quick, hostile glance.

"Officer and Director, my student has insulted our school and the honor of each of us. I wish to take responsibility for her actions and for assuring you this incident shall not be repeated. I request your permission to properly discipline her."

The principal looked at the cop, who reluctantly nodded. "That request is granted, Counselor. If you are willing to administer a proper punishment, I believe we can let this incident be forgotten."

Counselor Tolkiv then turned to the teenager and spoke in English. "I need to chastise you, Jennifer. I am unhappy about having to do this to you, but you have only yourself to blame. You shall suffer because of the choices you made."

Fear and anger swept through Jennifer as the cop led her to an unoccupied classroom. Counselor Tolkiv trailed behind, shutting the door as they entered. The cop took off Jennifer's handcuffs as her counselor issued her next order.

"Jennifer, you shall undress. Now."

"What?!"

"You heard me. You are to undress, immediately."

"Fuck you! I'm not taking my clothes off!"

The two adults were in no mood to argue. The cop grabbed Jennifer's arm and twisted it behind her back, as he pushed down on her neck in a grip that immobilized her. The girl's counselor pulled off her shoes and socks, then jerked her skirt and panties to her ankles. Jennifer then felt the buttons on her shirt coming undone one by one and her bra strap being unhooked. The cop shifted position to allow the teacher to pull Jennifer's shirt and bra off one arm at a time. The student struggled viciously, but in less than a minute she was naked. The cop twisted Jennifer's hands behind her back and put her handcuffs back on.

The cop grabbed Jennifer's arms and pulled her upright. Counselor Tolkiv stood directly in front of her, face to face. The girl was resisting and breathing heavily as the cop held her tight.

"Jennifer, if you wish to struggle like a criminal, you shall be treated like a criminal."

The cop led Jennifer down the main hallway to the school basketball court as her counselor followed behind. To Jennifer's horror the entire student body was assembled on the bleachers. The school principal was standing next to a small chair and a microphone stand. The chair had a sinister-looking leather police switch on it. Suddenly Jennifer realized the seriousness of what was about to happen to her.

The two adults and their captive took position next to the principal. The cop grabbed Jennifer's arm firmly to keep her standing in position. Counselor Tolkiv picked up the leather switch and tapped it in her hand as the principal gave a rather long speech about the need to respect rules. Finally he concluded, pointing to the scared naked girl standing next to him.

"Among us is a person who thinks rules do not apply to her. I presume the fact she is an American makes her think she is special in some way, but she shall learn that in this school, a student is a student, and she shall be treated as such. She shall learn the rules apply to all of you. What we have is an act of insurrection, and its perpetrator shall be punished. She shall receive the maximum school punishment of 25 vigorous strokes across the naked buttocks with a standard leather switch."

The cop removed Jennifer's handcuffs and ordered her to lie across the chair. Her eyes wide with terror, Jennifer complied, realizing she only could make her situation worse if she continued to resist. Counselor Tolkiv took a pair of small leather straps that looked like thick watchbands from her pocket. She wrapped a strap around each of Jennifer's wrists and secured the girl's wrists to chair-legs. Jennifer's hands were immobilized, but, because this was not a judicial punishment, her legs were not tied down.

The counselor tapped Jennifer's bottom with the switch and struck her hard across both bottom-cheeks. As the stroke seared into her exposed flesh, the student screamed from the pain and the pure terror of what she was enduring. She had not yet learned that in Upper Danubia a person being punished normally tries to stay quiet as long as possible. Jennifer's high-pitched scream died down into a series of sobs as her counselor tapped her bottom and struck again. Once again Jennifer screamed as her legs kicked up and down from the sharp pain of the two strokes. The teacher did not wait, but tapped her bottom and struck hard a third time.

Counselor Tolkiv proceeded much more quickly than would have a police officer. This was a school punishment, not a judicial punishment. She struck, waited for Jennifer's scream to die down, tapped her bottom with the switch, and struck again. Each stroke was accompanied by a very loud shrill scream, followed by a lot of vigorous crying and fluttering of her lower legs.

Jennifer was noisy throughout her punishment, as her Danubian classmates watched the affair with fascination. She had been something of a small celebrity among her peers because of her nationality and her defiant attitude about school rules. The Danubian teenagers had known that Jennifer was setting herself up to be disciplined. Several of them tried to warn her, struggling through the language barrier to get the American to realize that, if she pushed too far, she could expect to be switched. Jennifer rudely rebuffed the classmates who tried to caution her, so they simply waited to see how long it would take for her behavior to catch up with her.

The teacher struck the American harshly, but at the same time punished her fairly quickly and methodically. She felt somewhat sorry for the girl, knowing that what was happening was a horrible shock to her. Counselor Tolkiv did not enjoy what she was doing, but felt the switching was necessary to prevent the American from becoming a source of further disruption at the school.

Fifteen minutes and 25 strokes later, the punishment was finished. Jennifer's counselor bent down to unbuckle the straps immobilizing the girl's hands. Once her hands were free, Jennifer covered her face and continued sobbing. The American was in a lot of pain and totally humiliated.

Counselor Tolkiv grabbed Jennifer's wrist and pulled her up off the chair. She placed her hands on the sobbing girl's shoulders to position her with her backside facing the audience. Her bottom was marked with 25 red lines and was beginning to swell. For a student her punishment had been harsh, however, any convicted Danubian criminal would have been glad to change places with her.

As the American stood with her face buried in her hands, her counselor moved in front of her to admonish her. "Jennifer, you must stop crying. You are dishonoring yourself by making such a scandal over a simple switching. Furthermore, we cannot release you until you are silent."

With a great effort Jennifer managed to stop crying after a few minutes. The school principal declared the punishment over and ordered the students to return to their classes. Jennifer had to remain standing with her backside facing her classmates until the last of them was out of the room. The students filed out of the bleachers row by row, walking past Jennifer's exposed backside as they proceeded towards the door to the main hallway. All of Jennifer's classmates, hundreds of them, got a good look at her punished bottom as they slowly filed past her.

Counselor Tolkiv then took her teary student to the school infirmary where there was a bed she could lie down on to recover.

"Jennifer, if you need to cry, now is the time to do so. You may stay here as long as you wish, but once you recover enough to put on your uniform, I expect you to come to my office."

She left Jennifer's school uniform on a chair next to the bed, and closed the door to the small room. Jennifer cried for an hour, but finally got dressed and reluctantly went to the woman's office. The American endured a rather long lecture about responsibility and needing to set an example for proper behavior. The teacher finally released the girl for the day, but made it very clear to Jennifer that she expected her back in class the next day, on time, ready to study, and with her uniform presentable.

That night Jennifer sullenly returned to her host family, her bottom still quite sore from the welts. The two parents were incensed. They pulled a hard wooden chair out of the kitchen and ordered the American to sit down in the living room. Jennifer winced as the uncompromising wood from the chair pressed into her tender backside. For the next hour her host parents, using terrible heavily-accented English, lectured their guest about personal responsibility and the need to safeguard her honor as Jennifer shifted in her uncomfortable seat and tears rolled down her cheeks.

Once the lecture was finished and Jennifer was allowed to go to her room, she finally had time to give her situation some thought, without having any Danubians yelling at her. At first she wanted to call her parents in the US and have them extricate her from her year abroad. But as she picked up the phone, she reconsidered. How on earth could she explain this to them?

Jennifer then realized she was mostly to blame for her own situation. She had chosen to come here as an exchange student. She had chosen to ignore Counselor Tolkiv and the school rules. She had no one but herself to blame for not bothering to do any research before signing the papers that finalized her exchange student arrangements. She now was stuck here in Danube City, facing the awful realization she had to make the best out of her life in this restricted country.

Returning to school the next day was one of the hardest things Jennifer ever did in her life. At first she was mortified at the thought of having been switched in the nude in front of nearly 400 classmates. After a lot of nagging and threats from her host parents, she went to school almost in tears, expecting to be ridiculed by her peers.

Jennifer quickly found out ridicule was not how Danubian teenagers usually treated a fellow student who had been punished. Such punishments were common enough in Upper Danubia and were the logical outcome of rebellious behavior in school. Instead, Jennifer's classmates somewhat sympathized with the American. Several girls calmly sat down with the exchange student and explained why she had been switched. Anyia reminded her they had tried to warn her and then added a detail that made Jennifer cringe.

"Counselor Tolkiv switched you because she had to. I don't think you realize that cop was going to arrest you for lying to him, because in our country that's a crime. They would have put you on trial and made you wear a criminal's collar for a year for telling him you had your school's permission to be out of class, and then refusing to say what school you came from. Counselor Tolkiv got you out of it; she jeopardized her own honor to prevent you from being arrested. You need to be grateful to her."

That afternoon Jennifer, nervously twisting her hands in front of her, apologized to her counselor and thanked her for preventing her from being arrested. The teacher responded:

"Jennifer, you shall thank me by applying yourself in your studies. If I see you improving in your ability to study and to speak our language, then you shall have shown me you are truly grateful. As for yesterday's punishment, the unpleasantness between us has passed, and I consider the matter ended."

Jennifer sadly nodded. "I'll try, Counselor Tolkiv."

Jennifer then went to the school library, where Anyia and her other friends were sitting and reviewing textbooks for an upcoming test. Jennifer pulled some books out of her backpack and surprised them by asking in her terrible Danubian:

"I'm a bit behind, I guess, with the classes. Could you help me get caught up?"

The other girls nodded and with that Jennifer became part of their study group.

Jennifer spent much of the rest of her year in Upper Danubia hanging out with Anyia. The two girls quickly became close because of their very similar personalities. Anyia was a bit rebellious herself, but she knew where the limits were and how to avoid crossing them. That information was something that Jennifer very much needed to avoid going nuts in her new host country. Over time Jennifer began going over to Dukov's house, but it would be several weeks before she met Kim, given Kim's hectic schedule and late night music sessions.

One Sunday afternoon Jennifer went over to Vladim Dukov's house when Kim happened to be there. It was a bit of a shock seeing a fellow-American naked and wearing a metal collar, but at the same time seeing an American, any American, was a real treat for the high school student. Jennifer and Kim quickly struck up a conversation, both relishing the opportunity to speak in English. Kim told Jennifer her story and how she had been sentenced the previous year for marijuana possession. Jennifer was shocked.

"So ... you've been like this for more than a year? For smoking a joint? I mean ... they never let you wear any clothes ... at all?"

Kim smiled and shook her head. "No clothes. They're very strict about that. I mean, I go to work everyday, I've been on TV, I've stood singing outdoors in front of thousands of fans, always like I am now. It's part of my sentence, but it's not so bad. After a while you kind of enjoy it, at least when the weather's warm."

The sight of Kimberly Lee made Jennifer able to put her own situation into perspective. It was obvious that what had happened to her at school was nothing in comparison with what had happened to Kim.

Kim's 20th birthday passed in celebration, first at her job at the music store, then with the Dukovs, and finally at the Socrates Club. Sergekt was very affectionate and courteous to Kim, but at the same time she could tell he was very nervous. Finally, when the night was over and they left to return to Dukov's house, she found out why. Instead of simply leaving her at the door, he asked to come in and talk to her in Dukov's living room. Once inside he opened up a small cloth bag he had carried with him and pulled out a small carved wooden box. He swallowed and handed it to Kim. He then stood silent, according to Danubian protocol.

A bit bewildered, Kim opened the box. There were three items inside, a gold ring, a silver necklace with a pendant showing two griffins standing side-by-side, and a silver hairpiece with gold in-lays. Sergekt's birthday present was an engagement box.

Kim's heart raced. She knew there had to be protocol for accepting these items, but she was not sure what it was. She took a deep breath.

"How ... do we do this? I mean, what do people usually do in this country ... when they get engaged?"

"You hand me the items, one at a time, starting with the hair-piece, then the necklace, finally the ring. You tell me you accept each one and I will put it on you."

Kim picked up the hairpiece and handed it to Sergekt.

"Sergekt, I accept this hairpiece with all my love."

Sergekt took the hairpiece and gently pushed it into Kim's hair.

"Sergekt, I accept this necklace with all my love."

Sergekt wrapped the necklace around Kim's neck and clipped the clasp shut.

"Sergekt, I accept this ring, with all my love."

Sergekt put the ring on Kim's finger. It fit perfectly, leaving Kim wondering how Sergekt knew her ring-size.

Sergekt then knelt, kissed Kim's right hand and then her left. He stood up, took both of her hands in his own, and looked into her eyes.

"You are the love of my present, and the wife of my future. You have my heart and in your hands you hold my happiness."

For a long time Kim and Sergekt hugged each other in the silent living room of Dukov's house. So it was done, now it was official. Kim was Sergekt's fiancé.

It was painful, but finally Sergekt had to leave to go home. Kim felt bad for him because already it was well past mid-night and her partner had to be up early the next morning for classes. She watched Sergekt's bare figure as he quickly walked up the chilly street to the trolley stop. Kim was immensely happy, but also rather scared. She had thought about marrying Sergekt, but now to be formally engaged to him made her realize how seriously she had to take her life in Danube City. So this was it. There really would be no going back to the US, except perhaps to visit. Kimberly Annette Lee would give up her US passport and take a Danubian one, and return to her parents' house and her hometown as a foreigner. She was destined to finish her life in Upper Danubia, married to Sergekt Dolkiv.