The Diary of Jewel Delacroix Ch. 17

"But they'll send my brother back to his husband. They'll torture him!" Jennifer shouted angrily. "They'll torture us all." She put her face into her hands and started to cry.

"Look here...uh...now; don't do that..." the assistant ambassador became flustered in the presence of the crying young woman. "Countess Delacroix must be returned, but you are an American citizen, and if you want to return to the United States, you can. And as a minor, your qualified parent" The assistant ambassador looked to Jennifer's mother "is eligible to accompany you. But I am afraid that legally, there is nothing we can do for your son."

The assistant ambassador stood up. "Now if you follow the Marine outside, he will escort you to your son. You will want to say your goodbyes."

The assistant ambassador looked kindly at Jennifer and Jules' mother as they were escorted out by the marine guard. He felt sorry for them but there were larger issues at stake. The sudden appearance of Countess Delacroix was actually a godsend. Having black sites to send terror suspects for interrogation was often difficult and politically sensitive. Extraordinary rendition of these suspects was important for the war on terror. Allegoria's police had some of the most impressive interrogation techniques he had ever seen. Trading away one bored and unhappy housewife for assistance in that war was an easy decision for him to make. After only a few secure phone calls his superiors back in Langley agreed and were very pleased with his quick thinking and decisive action.

**

Jewel looked around the room to see if there was anything within reach that she could use to help him free himself. After the bodyguards brought him home from the embassy they placed him into a severe, high backed chair. A stiff wide leather belt of some sort was buckled around his waist so he couldn't stand up. His ankles and wrists were strapped to the legs and arms of the chair with equally stiff and uncomfortable leather straps. Jewel couldn't move his feet or hands more than an inch in any direction. They left his high heels on his feet and his toes and his calves were really starting to ache. Jewel was unable to flex them or stretch them out due to the restraints and the position he was sitting made them hurt even more.

After almost a year he still thought that women must be absolutely crazy to wear shoes like this. The 4 inch heels with a 1 inch platform raised his knees higher than he was used to, above the natural line of his legs, and the angle of his heels strained his calves adding to his agony. His back was too straight, and his head was pushed forward. The strain was building unbearably.

Jules looked up from his chair when the door in front of him opened and Leanne entered the room. Jules looked at Leanne and started to worry. He could not read the expression on her face. She waited a long time before she spoke.

"Jewel, your husband is very disappointed in you; running away like that and casting such outlandish aspersions; and to foreigners no less."

"I'm sorry; I didn't know I shouldn't try to run away from a kidnapper and a rapist." Jules tried hard to be strong, and the way Leanne stood over him made him worry, but he was too angry to stop himself.

"Again with such outlandish fabrications! You agreed to marry and just because your marriage didn't turn out exactly like you expected you cause all this unpleasantness." Leanne rarely raised her voice, but even then she was firm, even and steady.

Jules was getting angrier. Sarcasm was lost on Leanne. Jules couldn't hold back his anger anymore.

"Leanne, I agreed to marry a woman, not a man. I am not gay. I...am...not...gay! I want to leave and you have no right to do this to me!" Jules volume increased slightly. He was practically screaming at her. Screaming at her in his feminine contralto voice, he realized. He couldn't even remember what his male voice sounded like.

Leanne simply stood before him as if considering what he had said. Jules started to think he may have convinced her of the rightness of his cause. Leanne slowly walked around Jules chair until she stood behind him. "Yes I do have the right."

"I am not a lawyer, so I cannot advise you on the law, but you are not in America, you are in Allegoria. Everything that has happened to you has happened lawfully and with your consent under the laws of this country. If your husband decides to have an attorney explain things further to you then that is his choice. As a lawfully wedded male-bride under the laws governing arranged marriages you are under the protection of your husband and he has the right and the authority to make these decisions for you, as well as the legal authority to exercise his marital rights, and compel you to obey him. Even that damn foreign embassy agreed."

Jules was stunned. What was wrong with these people?

"What about my rights? What about my human and civil rights? Doesn't what I want matter?" Jules was still shouting.

"You are working yourself up for nothing Countess." Despite the calmness of her voice Leanne made his title sound like an epithet, practically spitting it out. "The facts are that you have misbehaved and brought embarrassment onto the House of Delacroix. The count has asked me to look after you and to see to it that you receive the proper training. You have made me look the fool! You must learn proper etiquette and decorum, and he has decided that you are also to be punished for your actions."

Jules struggled and strained against his restraints. He knew it was futile, but he tried anyway.

Jules turned and looked as the door opened again and two body-guards entered carrying the paddling station, the padded saw-horse, and place it in the center of the room. He hadn't seen that since Leanne had whipped him for swearing at the count at dinner in the days after their wedding.

At Leanne's direction the guards came to Jules' chair and unbuckled his restraints. Jules leapt forward as soon as the last restraint came off but the guards expected it and he was caught and held easily. As hard as he tried and struggled they still lifted him bodily as they carried him to the sawhorse and bent him at his waist over the middle saddle. One held his hands behind his back as the other placed first one foot, then the other into their cuffs, and then came around to the front to cuff both his hands. Jules was now bent over with his ass higher than his head. His long brunette hair fell forward and Jules' vision was obscured by his own hair. Jules was barely able to make out the bodyguards leaving the room and that Leanne was now standing to one side.

Leanne reached down and grabbed a handful of Jewel's hair and turned his head toward her. "Do you see this your grace?"

Jules looked and saw Leanne was holding a long rod. About 3 feet long with a shiny black lacquer coating.

"Have you ever heard of the 'rule of thumb' my lady?"

Leanne shook is head by his hair until he answered.

"No...oww! Stop pulling my hair!"

"It's an ancient law. A long time ago the law was passed and the law states that a husband may not discipline his wife with a rod any larger in diameter than the diameter of his thumb." Leanne watched Jewels expression as she let the news sink in. "It was actually one of the first laws ever conceived to protect women from abusive husbands."

Leanne let go of Jules hair and stood up behind him. Jules started to worry, and even started to feel dizzy. His fear was rising and he could feel the bile in his mouth and the blood rushing to his head.

"While you were having a pleasant time at the American Embassy I had to go out and find a rod that fit the precise diameter of your husband's thumb. 2 & 1/3 inches around. Not an easy task to do on short notice as you might imagine. I had to spend way more time on this errand than I wanted to. I should be helping you admire and put away your purchases from the shopping trip today, and yet, here we are."

Leanne went and stood behind Jewel and lifted up the hem of Jewel's dress and exposed his panties. Leanne had been so excited to begin expanding Lady Delacroix's wardrobe. She had felt the pride any teacher would feel when a challenging student suddenly understands her lessons. She was so proud of Jewel for her interest in shopping, and enjoying her day as a normal woman...and then she had the gall to go and completely ruin everything!

Jules gritted his teeth. He was determined to resist the pain, but the first strike from the rod fell sharp and flat across his bottom. Jules scream of agony was high and shrill.

"Are you sorry for what you have done?" Leanne's voice was still firm, calm and steady.

"YES! Yes! Yes! I'm Sorry!" Jules answered quickly. Any thought of resisting the pain was abandoned quickly; the rod was much worse than the switch she had used so long ago.

Leanne paused for a long time and watched and waited as Jewel's breathing slowed down. She could see a welt forming on his bottom, even through his panties.

After several moments Leanne saw that Jewel's breathing was nearly normal and brought the rod down again in a sharp stinging blow across her upper thigh and watched as a second welt formed near the first one. Jewel's scream of pain was every bit as intense as her first one.

"When I am convinced you are truly sorry, the discipline will be complete." Leanne said.

She waited several minutes as Lady Delacroix's screams and sobs of pain subsided. She waited several more minutes after that as she slowly recovered and got her breathing under control, Jewel's ragged gasps giving way to more normal deep breaths again.

It was going to be a long night, Leanne thought, as she brought the rod down across Jewel's bottom one more time...