“Did this guy just admit to beating his wife?” Angie said, disgust clear in her voice.
“That must have been hard for you,” Hazel said over the mic. “How did she die? Was it a rival family?”
“She was late from shopping.” Donny’s voice turned robotic. “Stella was always late for everything. I warned her that if she was late again, I’d make her regret it. She didn’t listen and I was so angry. I guess I hit her too hard, because when she fell… she hit her head on the table and never woke up. It was a terrible accident.”
“He fucking killed her,” I growled.
“And you’re surprised why?” Angie replied.
“She should have listened to you,” Hazel said mildly.
“She should have,” Donny agreed. “But you won’t make that mistake, will you Moira?”
“Of course not. I’ve learned my lesson and I’m ready to settle down and be your partner. If you’ll still have me.”
Donny’s voice turned considering. “To make sure of that, I must do one thing.”
“What’s that?”
“I must punish you for leaving and embarrassing me. Remind you who’s boss here. When you submit to me, that will clear the slate and regain my trust. Then we can have a fresh start.”
“Punish me?” Hazel’s voice had a quiver. I couldn’t tell if it was real or not. “What do you mean?”
There was the sound of a chair scraping across the floor, then some rustling.
“Come with me to the study. The servants don’t need to see this.”
I pressed the comms button to connect with the Sapphic Security team. “Get her out of there. Now!”
“Stand down Martin.” Lois’s voice came back immediately. “We have a code word. When she needs to use it, she will.”
We heard walking, then a door closing. Donny began lecturing Hazel about how she’d been disobedient, and his expectations for her behavior in the future. He was getting more and more agitated now, losing that cool calmness he’d employed most of the visit.
“I want you to know I take no joy in punishing you.”
“I know you don’t,” Hazel said meekly.
“But it’s something I have to do to help you. We’ll start with a hand spanking,” he said. “Then we’ll move to the belt. When we’re done, you’ll feel your punishment every time you sit down for the next week, and you’ll remember what happens when you disobey me.”
“You want to spank me like a child?” Hazel asked in a shocked tone. “There must be another way.”
“You heard me, Moira. I don’t repeat myself. Now take off your clothes and lean over the side of the couch. I want to see how my belt paints stripes on your skin.”
I’d always heard the phrase ‘seeing red’ but until that moment, I hadn’t understood it.
“Yeah, that’s not gonna happen, Donny.”
Angie and I both looked up in surprise as Hazel’s voice turned hard.
“Spanking can be fun in the right circumstances, with the right person, but corporal punishment is not okay,” Hazel said firmly. “You don’t get to hit me, or any other woman, in anger. Not anymore.”
“You insolent bitch.”
There was the sound of flesh hitting flesh, then Hazel cried out.
“He hit her!” I screamed in fury. “He fucking hit her.”
“She’s okay Martin, trust her. The minute she’s in trouble we’ll go in, I promise you,” Lois said.
