From the Top Shelf - A Master of Discipline - conclusion

Before I present the final chapter of A Master of Discipline by Zoe Templeton, I would like to bid a fond farewell to a dear friend, Rollin Hand. For many years he entertained us all with his blog and his published spanking stories. Rollin was always very generous about sharing his stories with me and allowing me to publish them on my blog. In May, Rollin took a break from blogging and writing in order to deal with his health issues. Sadly, Rollin passed away a few days ago. He will be sorely missed, and our thoughts go out to his family at this time. Next week I will post one of his excellent short stories here.

Now, on with the conclusion of A Master of Discipline. It's quite lengthy, but I couldn't see a way of breaking it up without losing the continuity of the wrap-up. So get comfortable with a hot drink and enjoy!

The party was in full swing. The wall's of Ruth's little house were shaking with the sound of the music, and she had never had so many people crammed into her lounge. Everyone was having a wonderful time, and, despite their varied backgrounds, all the guests were getting along together. Ruth giggled to herself at the incongruous sight of Lillian Greeves being swept off her feet by the young sergeant who worked with Tony. She was so happy; she could hardly believe that only three months had elapsed since her release from Damocles Priory.

The first few hours after she and Stephen had been released were simply chaotic and there had been moments when she wondered if her life would ever recover normality. Firstly, there had been explanations to make, on both sides. It transpired that Tony's timely arrival had been more due to the Reverend Mould than anyone else. The Reverend had not reconciled himself to his peremptory dismissal and had rented a small cottage nearby, in the hope that, somehow, he might be reinstated. He had apparently begun to give private tuition in his favourite subject, to eke out an income, while still keeping an eye on his beloved priory. The comings and goings of Robin Henderson and the Karabengse family had attracted his attention and, while walking in the woods, he had come across Stephen's motorcycle lying in the ditch where Luc left it. His suspicions had been aroused and he had contacted the local police, who traced the registration of the bike to Stephen. Tony had already become concerned at Ruth's absence from home, combined with the message Stephen had left on the answering machine. He had made a link, quite an incorrect one as it happened, between Ruth and Stephen. As soon as it became apparent that Stephen was the victim of foul play, Tony had descended on the priory with a squad of men, to be met by the sight of Nicky trying to climb out of an upstairs window and down the ivy. For Tony, once given the excuse he needed to force an entry, the rest became easy.

Ruth's explanation of how she and Stephen came to be dressed in not much more than broad smiles was not so easy. When Tony battered down the door of the main hall his immediate reaction had been one of anger. However Ruth somehow managed to allay his suspicions. The bluster of lies and half-truths put up by the Hendersons had helped because it had so irritated Tony that he would have listened to anything rather than accept what the arrogant Sir Harold and his objectionable son had to say. Sir Harold had even produced the papers which Ruth and Stephen had signed when they joined the Reverend Mould's course, as evidence that everything that had happened since had been done of their own free will.

Nicky, to Ruth's surprise, had taken charge of Stephen with a maturity beyond her years, taking him off for, as she put it, 'some tender loving care'. Ruth had suddenly realised that she could do with some of that herself, and persuaded Tony to cut short his interrogation to allow her some recovery time.

She had begun by taking a holiday, leaving all the statements, interviews and legal clearing-up which was the natural result of her abduction to be taken care of later. Ruth made minimal preparations, telling Lillian Greeves that she was taking some sick leave, and Tony only that she needed to be alone for a while. Then she quickly packed a bag and was gone. To his credit, Tony had not pressed her to stay. She knew it was a very difficult period for him too; part of her reasoning in wanting to get away was so that Tony would have time to adjust to what had happened.

After a day spent browsing in travel agencies, she had decided to rent a small stone cottage in Snowdonia, hiding herself away as best she could. She wanted no distractions, no contact with the outside world, while she came to terms with herself.

She spent a great deal of the time wondering what Tony would think when the police investigation began to reveal the details of just what had happened at Damocles Priory. In the end, she concluded that it didn't matter; Tony would either accept her for what she was or not at all. There was nothing she could do, indeed nothing she wanted to do, to change the fact that she was naturally, sexually, a submissive character. Things had certainly got out of hand at Damocles Priory - that must never be allowed to happen again - but she was sure that there were other ways of satisfying her craving without going to such extreme measures. If she persisted in trying to lay charges against the Hendersons, an awful lot of mud was going to be thrown, and inevitably some of it would stick. Ruth seriously doubted her own ability to stand up to cross-examination and deny that she had derived pleasure from what had been done to her. The irony that her own honesty could so work against her was not lost. After three weeks of musing in the Welsh mountains, she concluded that hiding herself away was doing her no good. So she returned home, ready to defy anyone who would not accept her at face value.

Ruth's first ordeal on returning home was returning to work and facing Lillian Greeves. Ruth knew that her boss deserved some sort of explanation,and that did not promise to be easy. The prospect made her feel every bit as nervous as a junior pupil, meeting her headmistress for the first time.

Lillian began by welcoming Ruth back from her sick leave. Taking three weeks had not been an excessive degree of sick leave; it had taken that long for the marks of her various punishments to wear off, leaving Ruth's bottom once again a pristine white as she examined herself in the bathroom mirror each morning.

"Now, Ruth, the question remains; what are we going to do with you for the next few weeks?" Lillian looked at Ruth with a kindly, motherly, sort of expression.

"I don't understand. Surely I can start work again? I'm ready to. I feel fine now."

"Yes, I can see you look well, but there is the question of the staff-pupil relationship. I don't know exactly what went on at Damocles Priory but, from the little I've managed to prise out of Nicky Shaw, your professional relationship with her, and Robin Henderson even more, was shall we say...embarrassingly compromised...was it not?"

Ruth felt herself blushing brightly. How much does she know? Did Nicky tell her everything? "Well...er...yes, I suppose it would be a little awkward if I had to teach Robin again," she admitted.

"Well that question does not arise. Whatever else happened, it has come to my notice that he was the ring-leader of a group of sixth-formers who were passing around some quite obscene video tapes, apparently made at Damocles Priory at the instigation of Henderson's father. So I have told his father to remove Robin from the school, with immediate effect. The tapes involved have been burned, and the other pupils have all felt the weight of my senior cane across their bare backsides. So that matter is now closed."

Ruth gave an inaudible sigh of relief. At least she would not have to live with the snickers of her pupils, pointing fingers behind her back, having witnessed her course performance. Lillian Greeves seemed to be smiling at her, but Ruth could not see any reason for humour. She put it down to the fact that her boss was trying to be pleasant. Little did she know that Lillian fully understood her relief, having featured on at least one of the tapes herself. She had discovered this when playing each of the tapes in turn, in the privacy of her home. before destroying them.

"However, there is still the question of Miss Shaw. She is leaving school at the end of this term anyway, having decide that an academic career is not for her, and her parents have supported her decision. A pity but there it is. I don't know exactly what her role was in the goings-on at Damocles. She will not tell me. I gather she has not been very helpful to the police either. I don't think it would be a good idea for you two to work in close harmony for the remainder of the term. I understand that she wants to talk to you, which is fair enough, but after that I think it would be best if you had minimum contact until she leaves the school.

I have dealt with her behaviour in truanting from school in order to play whatever part she did in the goings on at the Priory. She has had a damn good caning on her bare bottom which she won't forget in a hurry, and I left her in no doubt that I thought she deserved more. She accepted her punishment with remarkably good grace. This tends to confirm my suspicion that the young lady has a very guilty conscience and I suspect she feels she has escaped lightly, but in the circumstances I think it's best all round to let the matter drop. I don't believe she is able to sit comfortably yet, but that will pass, and I don't want to have your presence as a constant reminder of something that she, and the school, would rather was forgotten."

Ruth felt some sympathy for Nicky who had, after all, done her best to help in the end. All things considered though, a 'damn good caning' on her bare bottom was a fair penalty for her earlier involvement. But what was Lillian leading up to? Ruth had the distinct feeling that she was being set up for something. Was it to do with Lillian having a much better idea than she was so far admitting, about what went on at Damocles? That familiar feeling, the thrill of punishment to follow, began to stir in Ruth's loins. Lillian had not been too shy to use the tawse on her once before. Perhaps this interview was the build-up to another strapping. Her bottom tingled in anticipation, even as she was wondering what pretext there could possibly be for such an action.

"As it happens, there has been an extraordinary coincidence which provides an opportunity for you to further your career over the next few weeks and, at the same time, will keep you out of school for the same period."

Lillian was still smiling, and Ruth was mystified by what might be coming next.

"Educorp-West was very interested in the work that Reverend Mould was doing, and there was general dismay when it transpired that Damocles Priory would no longer be available for staff training courses, although it was felt that, perhaps, the good Reverend was just a little too enthusiastic about Action Learning. So the Company has decided that we will set up something similar at another establishment, only with a more balanced course content. I have suggested to the Board that you should be seconded, until next term, to lead a project team consisting of the Reverend Mould and another colleague, to design the new course curriculum. Are you interested?"

To say that Ruth was flabbergasted was to understate the case wildly. Ruth could not believe that she was hearing correctly. Her mind spun. Although she was entirely innocent of any wrong-doing in connection with Damocles Priory, she knew that her behaviour had not been totally professional. She had expected a reprimand, at the very least, but this was almost by way of a promotion! She stammered her thanks, and asked Lillian if she could have a little while to think the offer over, a request that was readily granted.

Her sense of shock at the unexpected offer had not helped her next conversation to go any easier. Emerging from the headmistress's office, she had walked straight into Nicky, who had been tipped off about her presence by Coral Browne. After an embarrassed silence, Ruth broke the ice.

"Hello, Nicky, Miss Greeves tells me that you have decided to leave school at the end of term."

"Yes, miss, I think after what happened I don't think I could go back to being a schoolgirl again."

Ruth pondered for a moment, but she knew what the girl meant; the events at Damocles Priory had been a new experience for them both, and neither could wind back the clock.

"Yes, I suppose so," she said. "What are you going to do with yourself? There are still openings for further education, if you want to, you know."

"I know, and maybe, later, I will. To start with though, I'm going to get some business training and earn my own living. My parents say it's OK, and there is a little project which I want to try , just to see if I can make it work."

This was the old Nicky whom Ruth had known before the incident at Damocles, the sharp, intelligent, self-confident girl for whom she had predicted such a bright future. She smiled, thankful that she could still be proved right.

"I'm glad you have such bright hopes, Nicky, after all that's happened. I wanted to say something about that. I mean, now that you are finishing school, launching into the big wide world, as it were, as one adult to another, I can rely on what happened at Damocles remaining confidential, can't I?"

"Oh, Ruth, of course you can. You are right, I have grown up. I finished being a schoolgirl last week when Miss Greeves caned my bottom. I don't ever want to repeat that...at least not in that sort of way." She grinned knowingly at Ruth, rubbing the back of her skirt as she did so. "Your secret is safe with me. Who knows, one day I may need you to give me some advice on the subject."

It was Ruth's turn to smile. She knew that Nicky was winding her up, but still felt that she could trust her. It would be nice to have her as a friend in years to come, she thought. After all their age difference now was not that great and soon it would mean nothing.

Later that day she had to face Tony again. Arriving home after work, she knew that he was already there; his car was in the drive and he had his own key. Her heart was in her mouth as she parked, being careful not to box him in, and being extra-careful to lock her own car. She would never, never, never leave a car unlocked again. If her experiences at the priory had taught her one lesson, it had taught her that. Meekly, she let herself in, knowing that the next few hours were going to be difficult.

Tony was sitting in the kitchen, waiting for her. Their first words were awkward. They could have been strangers meeting for the first time. They talked about the weather and how it had been since Ruth went away. Tony told Ruth that he had tended her little garden while she was away, and how the fine weather had made everything grow. Then Ruth said that she had been to Wales, to Beddgelert. She told Tony the story about the Welsh prince who had slain his faithful dog, Gelert, thinking that it had killed his son, only to find that the hound had defended the boy to the death in the face of marauding wolves. Tony said that was very sad.

The conversation moved on to work. Ruth told Tony about her conversation with Lillian Greeves and the opportunity she had been offered. When she had finished, Tony mentioned for the first time the subject of Damocles Priory. However he did not begin, as Ruth had been expecting, with an interrogation. His surprising news was that Stephen Langton had mysteriously resigned from the police force and was declining to give evidence in any proceedings, which was going to make any kind of prosecution difficult.

"The rumour is that he came into some money, unexpectedly, but I think there is more to it than that." Tony was obviously waiting for Ruth to comment, and perhaps to explain her side of the story.

Gradually the barriers between them crumbled and the talking ceased to be mere niceties and became communication. The mention of Stephen was the key that unlocked Ruth's inhibitions. As she unravelled her tale she grew in confidence, and Tony grew in understanding. Their conversation went on long into the evening and, by its end, Ruth felt totally drained. She had not held much back; her experiences and their effect on her had all come out in the open. The only bit she glossed over was Stephen's and her brief relationship. She covered that part of the story by saying that Stephen tried to rescue her and had been overpowered by Luc. The details of what transpired afterwards she left to Tony's imagination, and she was careful not to fertilise that imagination too much. Even so, at several points in the narrative she thought that she had misjudged her partner's feelings and that perhaps he had guessed more than was good for her, but she never did find out exactly how much Tony knew of what had gone on at the priory.

Finally, when everything had been aired, Tony took a deep breath. "You don't really want to face a court case and giving evidence, do you?" he asked thoughtfully.

"Not really," Ruth admitted. "What good would it serve? It wouldn't do me any good. Sir Harold Henderson is bound to have some really sharp lawyers. They'd make me look silly at best, and a whole lot worse if I was unlucky. I'd never be able to face working at the school again. Do you think I'm so terrible not wanting to give evidence?"

"No, not really. You're right, of course, you wouldn't come out of it very well. Neither would Stephen or Nicky. I'm not so sure that I care too much about Stephen - I still don't think you've told me all there is to tell about his part in this - but it would be a shame to ruin young Nicky's life. So the question remains; what are we going to do with you?"

"How do you mean, do with me? I'm not a thing, you know! I'm a person. I have a free will. You can't just decide something about me without me agreeing to it."

"Oh, I know that, but this famous free will of yours has just got you into a pile of trouble. You might not be so lucky next time. It seems to me that you need a bit of firm guidance."

"Oh, what are you suggesting?"

"Get yourself up to the bedroom, wench!" He turned her gently about and patted her rump as an encouragement. Ruth needed no second bidding. This was her old Tony, back to normal! She leapt up the stairs two at a time. Reaching the bedroom, she turned to hug him, putting both arms round his neck. He held her head to him with one hand, his tongue avidly seeking hers. She felt his free hand tugging at the zip of her skirt.

As the garment fell to the ground, Tony gave her a gentle push. The back of her knees contacted the end of the bed and Ruth squealed, tumbling backwards in an untidy heap on the bed. She lay on her back, laughing, genuinely happy for the first time in weeks, as he flung off his own clothes. She expected him to join her on the bed immediately but, instead, he scooped up her legs, his arm under her knees. He lifted her ankles high and pulled her panties unceremoniously to her knees.

"Oh, sir!" she giggled, "that's not very dignified."

"You won't sit on your dignity when I've done with you."

Ruth felt her legs being lifted higher, bent back over her shoulders. "Tony, what are you doing? No!" Her voice rose to a squawk as his intentions became clear.

"You caused me a lot of trouble and heartache over the last month, young lady." His right hand, the fingers extended rigidly, made a stinging contact with her bottom. "I don't want it to happen again."

She wailed as he spanked her again, but not so loudly as to put him off.

With her legs held high, her bottom lifted inches off the bed, Ruth was totally exposed. She could watch every smack, watch the movement of his hand before the loud slap of the impact. She could also see the effect of the spanking on Tony's rapidly stiffening manhood, and prayed that he would yield to lust before the heat in her bottom became absolutely unbearable. She was not disappointed. With a final resounding whack, Tony clambered onto the bed, hooking her knees over his shoulders to assume their favourite position.

For a brief moment, she was able to watch his penis lancing towards her. Splaying her legs wide, ready to receive him, she felt her smooth exposed sex-lips pucker as his throbbing gland parted them, paused momentarily at the entrance, then slammed into her with a ferocity that rattled her teeth together. There was no delay, no savouring of a slow penetration tonight. With a passion fuelled by abstinence, Tony plunged into her again and again, making Ruth groan with the force of his thrusts, his rapid pumping making her gasp for breath. Such vigour could not be sustained for long, by either partner, and Ruth screamed softly as she climaxed, feeling his hot semen filling her, her vagina contracting in a series of spasms which gripped his member in a velvet vice, squeezing him dry.

"Ruth - about us." His voice was husky. "I don't want anything like the last few weeks ever to happen again. I know it wasn't your fault and whatever happened between you and Stephen is over now, but I'd like to make sure. About us, I mean."

"You mean you want to make an honest woman of me, so I have to promise to obey?" Ruth didn't really consider the significance of the words.

"Ruth, I love you and I want you to be my wife," he whispered softly in her ear, as he lay beside her.

"And will you still spank me if I say yes? Tan my bottom if I misbehave?"

"If that's what it takes to keep you happy."

"Oh, Tony, yes, please. Oh yes." She began to weep with joy as he held her close.

After that, events had moved so fast that Ruth could hardly believe so much could be accomplished so quickly. Her experience at Damocles Priory had opened up a new chapter in her life, which she could never have dreamt of. Firstly, Tony used his influence to clear up the legal side of things with a minimum of fuss. To her relief, the Karabengse family left the country; not exactly deported, just encouraged to seek a new home elsewhere. Robin Henderson, having been caught in possession of a number of video tapes made at Damocles, was duly prosecuted and given a three-month juvenile supervision order, plus a judicial bare bottom caning of twelve strokes, which Tony had gleefully witnessed and recounted to Ruth afterwards. Sir Harold Henderson was persuaded to divest himself of all his financial interests in Damocles Priory and any other educational interests and announced his retirement from business.

Secondly, Ruth successfully completed the project which Lillian Greeves had set her, finding the Reverend Mould a surprisingly engaging character as a working colleague. At the end of the project, she made a presentation of her findings to the board of Educorp-West and received a very attractive offer of promotion as a reward.

Finally, and most surprising of all, Tony and Ruth received a letter from Nicky Shaw. The letter, in Nicky's neat hand, began:

'Dear Ruth and Tony,

We were so pleased to hear the news of your engagement that we thought you might like to hear our little surprise as well. Stephen and I have formed a partnership. After what happened at Damocles, I took pity on Stephen, because what happened was partly my fault. We, sort of, got together. I know you'll think I'm awful and, normally, we would not have told people about this for a while yet, but Stephen winning the lottery sort of changes things.

To cut a long story short, when I was shut away on my own at Damocles, while Robin and the others were being nasty to you and Stephen, I was looking for a way to escape. I found an old tin box. I was going to use it to smash the door but then Tony arrived and there was no need. Anyway, I kept the box and, later, when all the fuss had died down, I read the papers inside it. They turned out to be the recipe for Moon Balm. It's ever so simple really, just some herbs and things, mixed up, and well, you don't need to know all that stuff.

The fact is, Stephen and I have gone into a business partnership, as well as the other kind. Stephen has bought Damocles Priory from Sir Harold Henderson, because all the herbs and things we need are there, and with my business training, we're going to set up a little company to market Moon Balm. I don't need to tell you, Ruth, it has pretty remarkable pain-relieving and healing properties, and Stephen says it has other beneficial effects as well. Stephen says I'm too young to know what they are but I can guess!

Stephen sends his love, as I do

Yours

Nicky '


When she had finished reading, Ruth laughed until she cried. Tony was mystified at first, then saw the funny side and joined in the laughter. They replied promptly, inviting both Nicky and Stephen to their engagement party, but received no reply. Although Ruth had kept the letter in her mind ever since, she had been so frantically busy and so deliriously happy that she had not done anything more about it. Now, with the party well under way, she realised that there were still two guests missing.

Ruth was suddenly aware that Tony was beckoning her from across the room, gesturing that she should come to the kitchen. With an effort, she dragged herself back to the present and obediently made her way through the crowd to the kitchen door. Obedience was very much on the agenda these days.

"Congratulations, Tony, do we get to kiss the bride-to-be?" To her amazement, Ruth saw Stephen and Nicky standing behind Tony.

"Sorry we are so late," Nicky stepped forward holding a parcel. "We got held up, so we came in the back door to surprise you. It was my fault, I had to get something from the woods and it took some time to find exactly what I wanted."

"Here, this is for Tony," Stephen interjected. "You'd better give it to him." He passed a large brown-paper parcel to Ruth.

"Why have I got to give it to Tony? It's your present." Ruth was puzzled.

"You'd better open it and see." Nicky was laughing now, and Ruth was sure that she was about to become the victim of some sort of practical joke. Nevertheless, her curiosity was getting the better of her, so, with Tony at her elbow, she put the package on the table, rummaged in the drawer for some scissors, and cut the string.

The wrapping paper folded back, revealing an antique looking glass case, the wooden frame bearing a patina of age.

"We found it when we were clearing out all the old stuff from Damocles," Nicky chortled gleefully. "We thought you and Tony would like to have a souvenir of Damocles Priory."

"Very thoughtful, I'm sure." Ruth grinned wryly, examining the case which she had last seen in the main hall of the priory. The curly handled cane and black tawse were every bit as menacing as when she had last seen them. But worst of all was the bundle of birch twigs, carefully bound with a pink ribbon. They were clearly freshly cut.

"As that's Tony's present, we thought you had better have this." Nicky was grinning from ear to ear as she passed Ruth another parcel. Opening the second package, Ruth found a cardboard sleeve with three small glass jars, ornately decorated. Each one was labelled in gold script against a black background.

"They are samples from our very first production run," Nicky explained proudly. "We had them specially packaged for you . You'd better read the labels carefully."

'For Ruth," she read the card stuck to the first jar. Then she looked at the individual labels on the jars. 'Regular (tawse) , 'Extra-strong (cane) , and 'Ouch!' (birch).

She blushed to the roots then looked adoringly at Tony, who was standing in the kitchen doorway. She felt herself shiver with anticipation at the thought of blending her new professional role, as senior instructor at Educorp-West's new staff training establishment - Director: The Rev. J. Mould, with the equally demanding job of being Mrs. Tony Chalmers.

THE END