Author's note: This is my attempt at a pastiche of a historical novel – a sort of Jane Austen meets the Lustful Turk. The views and attitudes of some characters represent those of the period and are not mine! I hope you enjoy the story.
CHAPTER 1
In which Amy and Lucy's governess applies firm discipline
Our story begins, gentle reader, in the tumultuous summer of the year 1815. They tyrant Bonaparte had been overthrown and exiled to St Helena and peace descended at last on Europe. As for myself, I had just attained the age of eighteen years and eagerly anticipated the pleasures of entry into society. One small cloud blighted the sunny face of this glorious summer. My beloved father, an eminent diplomat, was to be dispatched to Italy to conduct important negotiations on behalf of his Majesty's government. Despite all my pleadings he would not consent to my accompanying him on his outward journey. Finally after many remonstrations on my part he consented to accept that I should join him at a later date. It was agreed that on the conclusion of his business I should join him together with my cousin Lucrezia, our governess and a suitable chaperone.
I should explain to you, dear reader, that my beloved mother has departed this life many years before when I was no more than an infant. However, my dear father had cared for me with the utmost solicitude from that dreadful moment onwards. Into our household came my cousin Lucrezia the child of my mother's sister who had married an Italian gentleman. Sadly, Lucrezia had been orphaned when cholera swept through the country of her birth and the small child had been brought to England and placed in the care of my own father.
The education and upbringing of Lucrezia and me, or Lucy as she came to be called in our family was entrusted to our governess Miss Frances Burnley. Miss Burnley was the daughter of an impoverished parson somewhere in the North of England. Miss Burnley was what many would have described as a handsome young woman, sadly the beauty of her features was to my view marred by a severity of expression and manner. I came to realise as my perceptions sharpened with maturity that Miss Burnley harboured a mortal resentment towards those who had been born into more fortunate positions than herself. A more sensitive soul might have felt some pity towards two orphaned and motherless girls. Miss Burnley, however, only nurtured her antipathy towards us based, doubtless, upon her resentment at her need to take employment, albeit with an employer as benevolent and kindly as my father. While Miss Burnley was the epitome of charm and sweetness to my father, her manner towards Lucy and myself was one of coldness and impatience. Our lessons were conducted in an atmosphere of iron discipline and she was only too ready to chastise us for the smallest errors in our lessons or the slightest misdemeanours in our deportment. While my father was the gentlest and most loving of men, he believed in firm discipline and any complaints by Lucy or myself were shrugged off in his usual deprecatory manner. Miss Burnley knew best. Miss Burnley came with the best possible references from the most excellent families.
The news that my dear father was to depart for Italy and leave us in the care of this cold hearted woman filled my heart with dread. In my father's absence her ruthless discipline would go unchecked and all the bitter resentments, which doubtless filled her bosom, would be poured out upon the two unfortunate girls in her change. Sadly all too soon the day came when my father's trunks were packed into his carriage and Lucy and I bade him a fond farewell. He reassured us that he would soon send for us and departed.
In the meantime the overseeing of the household and indeed of Lucy and myself was to be in the hands of Lady Okeleigh, a widowed lady who was an old friend of my father's. Lady Okeleigh had arrived at our house a few days earlier and installed herself in the best bedroom other than my father's. There she spent much of her time attended by her own maid and a negro manservant by the name of Johnson. It quickly became apparent that Lady Okeleigh had little interest in taking responsibility for the running of the house or in the care and education of the two young girls who had been placed in her charge. She was only too happy to delegate the former to the housekeeper, while Miss Burnley was allowed a free rein in overseeing our daily activities.
Within a few days the difference which this would make in our lives became immediately apparent. Lucy and I were taking our afternoon lesson with Miss Burnley who was instructing us in the intricacies of French grammar. While Lucy spoke Italian well, having learnt it from her mother, she had no grasp of the rules of language and found it difficult to pick up more than a few words of French using Miss Burnely's formal method of tuition. Lucy made error after error in the exercises set by Miss Burnley and our governess became increasingly irate at my cousin's lack of attention to her studies.
Finally, Miss Burnley asked Lucy a question concerning the agreement of adjectives and Lucy burst out; "Really Miss Burnley, this is just too tiresome. May we not undertake some more interesting and meaningful activity. Perhaps we might go for a ride in the park?"
Miss Burnley's face darkened and she said; "Miss Lucrezia, you will continue the exercise until you have completed it. If there are any errors you will remain in this room until you have corrected every one of them. If necessary, Miss Amy will go riding this afternoon without you."
"But this is not fair!" exclaimed Lucy. "We have worked on these stupid French exercises all morning. I don't want to learn French, it's a stupid language anyway."
At this she dropped her book and rushed into the next room. Miss Burnley followed her and although I remained seated I could hear raised voices through the open door.
"Miss Lucrezia, you will return to the school room this instant." Miss Burnley cried in her most commanding tone.
Lucy could be stubborn and willful but she dared not disobey Miss Burnley. Even trivial acts of disobedience could earn a loss of privileges and both of us had spent weary afternoons writing out lines when we should have been walking in the garden or riding in the park. Recently Miss Burnley had taken to a novel form of punishment. This entailed beating us on the hands with a ruler. The victim had to hold her hand out while Miss Burnley administered the specified number of strokes. She had once given Lucy six very hard strokes and she had been quite unable use that hand for the rest of the day. Reluctantly Lucy returned to the schoolroom followed by Miss Burnley who shut the door behind her.
"Very well," said Miss Burnley, "I see I have no option but to teach you a lesson. And Miss Amy, let this be a lesson to you too concerning the punishment for insubordination. I will not be spoken to in this way."
At that Miss Burnley strode across to a cupboard in the corner of the room and to my great astonishment returned bearing a long and wicked looking cane. Where she had obtained this I had no idea as neither my father nor any other member of the household had ever physically chastised Lucy or myself before. I saw Lucy quail for a moment and then attempt to recover her composure.
"Bend over my desk," commanded Miss Burnley.
"But, no" mumbled Lucy. "You can't, this is not right."
"It is completely right and I shall punish you as I see fit," the governess said icily. "Now bend over the desk."
Lucy hesitated one moment longer and then complied with the order which she had been given. I was unable to move, so shocked was I at this unexpected development. Lucy bent over Miss Burnley's desk which was just waist high. I could see she was now very apprehensive as to what was to come next. Suddenly to my surprise Miss Burnley grasped the hem of Lucy's dress and pulled it up folding her skirts above her waist. The action was so quick that neither of us had time to respond. In the summer months it was our custom not to wear drawers or other underclothes in order to enjoy a little coolness so Lucy's nether regions were now revealed in their stark nakedness. For one of Mediterranean ancestry Lucy was quite pale and the white moons of her plump little buttocks were now revealed spread across Miss Burnley's desk.
I expected Lucy to react in some way but she was clearly so surprised and terrified that she remained frozen in her position. Before she was able to come to her senses, Miss Burnley raised the cane and brought it down with considerable force on Lucy's posterior. Lucy gasped in pain but Miss Burnley simply raised the instrument once more and brought it down with a swish on my poor cousin's naked buttocks. Still Miss Burnley was not content and seemed to raise herself in order to bring all her energies into a third stroke. This time the cane landed with an almighty crack and dear Lucy emitted a shriek of agony. As Miss Burnley stepped back I observed three cruel red weals across poor Lucy's pale buttocks. The final and most forceful blow had actually broken the skin and drawn blood.
