Harder Than She Thought
The walk to the grocery store was almost two miles each way. Vanessa hadn't walked that far before in her life, but Jon expected her to do it whenever she needed food. It turned out to be easier than she imagined. It was good exercise, too.
She felt invigorated when she reached the store. She walked briskly, trying to maintain the pace she normally used on the treadmill. It was a fancy, upscale grocery store that had several tables with chairs just outside the front door; the tables were for customers who bought ready-to-eat food from the deli department. As she walked by, Vanessa noticed that someone had left a lighter and a pack of cigarettes on one of the tables.
That pack of cigarettes was all she could think of as she shopped. Her desire for cigarettes was strong as ever. She imagined that the person who'd left them there would come back to get them, but they were still there when she left the store. Immediately, Vanessa snatched them off the table and lit one of the cigarettes. She inhaled deeply. It was wonderful. It felt like coming home.
She told herself that she'd just have one, but she lit another almost as soon as she finished the first. This was a complete violation of her agreement with Jon, but she had never had much willpower, and she told herself that it was OK as long as he never found out. When she got home she put the food away, then went out to the pool so she could have another cigarette. If she smoked outside, Jon wouldn't smell it when he came over.
And he didn't. But what Vanessa didn't know was that the security system cameras caught everything that happened outside the house, including the pool area. Everyday before leaving work Jon checked the cameras because he didn't trust Vanessa to live up to their agreement. He worried she might ask a friend to come over with a bottle of wine or something. He saw her sitting outside, smoking one cigarette, then another, and it made him depressed.
What the hell was he supposed to do now? The whole point of his agreement with Vanessa was to force her to stop making self destructive decisions. Smoking was a big deal to Jon, partly because Vanessa had worked so hard to fool him into believing she didn't smoke. Vanessa only revealed the truth after she'd made him fall in love with her.
Jon sat at his desk and watched the video over and over, trying to decide how to respond. He wondered what his father would do if his mother misbehaved. He finally made his decision, then drove home.
Vanessa was dressed in a sexy nightgown when he came through the door. She'd taken a shower and used mouthwash to make sure she didn't smell like cigarettes, which she'd hidden in the back of a drawer in the bedroom. "I'm glad to see you, baby," she said.
Jon sat on their sofa and directed Vanessa to sit next to him. He pulled her across his lap. It was puzzling. Was he going to spank her? They'd enjoyed doing that before, but this felt different. Jon removed his necktie and used it to bind Vanessa's wrists behind her back.
Something was wrong.
"I'm going to ask you a question, and I'm going to be very disappointed if you don't tell me the truth," Jon said. "Where did you put the cigarettes?"
How in hell had he figured it out!?! Could he smell it? Vanessa's first urge was to deny that she had any cigarettes; lying was what came naturally to her. But she was smart enough to realize that since Jon knew the truth, denial would just make her situation worse.
"They're in one of my drawers," she said.
Jon was very relieved that Vanessa told the truth. He'd decided what he needed to do, and he dreaded it.
"Are you giving up on our agreement?" Jon said. "If you don't want to continue, you don't have to. This is completely voluntary."
"I'm so sorry, Jon. I don't even know why I picked up those cigarettes. I want to continue. Please give me another chance. I won't do it again."
That was what Jon expected her to say.
"I'm willing to continue, but what you've done is unacceptable," he said. "I feel like you're forcing me into a corner. I can't just let you get away with violating our agreement, but I don't have many options. Our deal is that you go to prison if you can't follow our rules."
"Jon, please don't do that. I can do better. I'll do anything if you'll just give me a second chance."
He sat a long time thinking about it. She was saying what he'd hoped she'd say. "Alright. I'm willing to try again. But I need to make it clear that you have to do as you're told."
Jon lifted the hem of Vanessa's nightgown and lowered her panties down to her knees. He unbuckled his belt and pulled it from his pants. Jon took the belt in one hand, gripped Vanessa's wrists firmly with the other, and whipped her hard enough to produce a loud crack that echoed through the room.
Vanessa screamed. That HURT! Her mother used to whip Vanessa when she was a little girl, and it had hurt, but this was more painful than anything she'd felt before. Much more painful. She was still in shock when Jon whipped her again. And again. She was screaming, and kicking, and begging him to stop, but he just kept whipping the belt across her bottom and the back of her legs. It went on and on, with Vanessa struggling to free herself and screaming as loud as she could
"Stop making so much fuss!" Jon said harshly. Vanessa stopped struggling. Her screams turned into loud sobbing. It was agonizing, and it seemed like it would never end.