Spank: The Improbable Adventures of George Aloysius Brown (34 page)

"
Yes, someone we think is currently in
Hong Kong
.
"

"
Doesn
'
t matter where he is. If he has a computer, we can find it and hide a tracker. Next time the punter sends a message, even if it
'
s a note to his mother, we will know where he is, accurate to about 25 feet. Bingo.
"

"
Hang on though. This bloke works for
Hong Kong
border security. He must know how to sweep his computer of possible tracking devises.
"

"
He can sweep all he wants. Bring in Molly Maid if he wants to.
This one is the latest in high-tech wizardry. Without boring you with the details, it hides in the hard drive and changes its location three-hundred times a second. It
'
s not just like looking for a needle in a haystack, it
'
s like looking for a needle in three hundred haystacks. Not only that but it migrates?
"

"
Migrates?
"

"
It travels wirelessly to any functioning computer within sixty feet that has the punter
'
s imprint. If he has a mobile phone, it will go there. Global positioning system in his car? There it is.
If he has a microchip in his toaster it would go there too. This thing spreads like a virus.
"

"
Sounds promising. Fancy a beer?
"

"
Best offer I
'
ve had today.
"

"
Great. Meet you at the pub in 30 minutes.
"

Over a couple of pints, the man from MI6 listened attentively to Catherine
'
s story.

"
And you really feel your life may be in danger from this bloke?
"
he asked her.

"
I don
'
t know. He was mentally scarred by what happened to him when he was in the army during the war in
Iraq
, He holds himself responsible for the deaths of innocent civilians and he suffered bouts of depression when we were together in
Hong Kong
. I don
'
t know his state-of-mind. He might be capable of anything. The worrying part is not knowing where he is.
"

Christopher Marples drained his beer and got up to put his coat on.
"
Ordinarily, I would say this is a matter for the police and we wouldn
'
t get involved,
"
he said.
"
But because of this bloke
'
s role in
Hong Kong
border security, I can justify at least keeping an eye on him. I
'
ll get my people onto it right away. George, I
'
ll call you if we learn anything. Nice meeting you, Catherine.
"

"
Nice meeting you. Thank you, I feel better already.
"

Outside, it was getting dark. From their table in the window, they could see the headlamps of joggers pounding along the Embankment. Beyond them, across the dark expanse of the River Thames, the lights of the MI6 building shone reassuringly.

Catherine smiled at George and squeezed his hand. It had been the right decision to return to
London
. It was home. She felt safer there.

"
Actually, right now, I have an even more pressing concern,
"
she told him.
"
I
'
ve got to find somewhere to live.
"

George grinned.
"
God, do I have to do everything?
"
he said.
"
Actually, I might be able to help you with that, too. There
'
s a furnished flat across the road from me, owner lives in Canada, good mate of mine, only uses it for a couple of months a year. If I ask him I
'
m sure he
'
ll let you bunk down there until you get a place of your own.
"

And so George and Catherine became neighbors and their friendship deepened.
It had been six months since they made their literary pact and they met regularly to discuss their progress. It was at one of these sessions that George
'
s phone rang. It was the man from MI6.

"
Thought you should know, your man left his apartment for
Hong Kong
International
Airport
. It
'
s possible he checked his computer and his phone in left luggage. Whatever he
'
s done, he
'
s under the radar, although our people are confident they will pick him up again. Meanwhile, we checked the passenger manifesto of every international flight that departed since he got there. Somebody by the name of Raymond Charles Montgomery is apparently en route to
London
.

News item:

A 24-year-old London advertising executive who was allegedly abducted from a flat in Pimlico last night, was rescued unharmed after police stopped a rented car apparently after a tip-off from a neighbor. A 42-year-old Caucasian man resident of
Hong Kong
is assisting police with their enquiries. Police said the woman and her alleged abductor were known to each other. No names have been released.

It
'
s been a week now since I was drugged and abducted by R.C. Montgomery and all I have to show for it is this one paragraph item from the evening paper. It must have been a slow news night. But he
'
s out of my life now and in return for my agreeing not to press charges, he signed an injunction undertaking to have no further contact with me. At least now I can get on with life and more importantly finish my book.
Nan
says a kidnap charge would be hard to prove because of our previous relationship. It didn
'
t matter that he had disguised himself as an Arab, forced entry into my flat, drugged me, stripped me, tied my hands behind my back, clothed me in a burqa and forced me into his car. All this apparently could be explained as part of a sex-fuelled fantasy in which he claimed I was a willing participant. Things started to unravel when his solicitor, in an interview in the prosecutor
'
s office, questioned me about events following my 18th birthday.
Nan
said to answer all the questions. He was the one facing charges not me. I remember a horrible sparse little room, a table, a few hard wooden chairs, a dying moth flapping at an incandescent light.
In the life so far of Catherine Mallory Jones, this was not one for the highlight reel.

When did you first meet Raymond Charles Montgomery?

When I was at school, he was the headmaster.

What school was that?

The
Chiltern Hills
Academy
at Shoreham-on-Sea.

But he wasn't just your headmaster, was he? At some stage you got to know him in an entirely different context, did you not? You had a consensual sexual relationship with him. Is that correct, Miss Jones?

Yes.

In fact, it was more than consensual, wasn't it?
You initiated it, did you not? Be careful how you respond. These are questions that will be asked of you in court should these very serious charges stand.

Nan
: Mr.Rolandson, I object to veiled threats made to my client about what might or might not be asked in court.

Then I repeat, Miss Jones, it is true that it was you who initiated intimacy with Mr. Montgomery?

It
'
s true.

What sort of physical contact was there?

He disciplined me.

In what way did he discipline you?

He spanked me.

Did he, indeed?
He spanked you. And yet corporal punishment has been banned in British schools for more than 30 years. Clearly he had no authority to do so, did he? He spanked you because you wanted him to. Is that not correct? You went to his office with a forged note from a senior staff member, a note that you yourself had written, requesting that you be disciplined
'
like a junior girl
'
. I have a copy. The original is in my office safe. Is this the note that you wrote, Miss Jones?

It is.

And because he didn't send you packing, indeed he went along with your schoolgirl fantasy, which now, whatever the perceived morality, became a sexual act between consenting adults in private. And you, Miss Jones, you willingly bent over his knee and lowered your underwear to be spanked by him. Isn't that what happened?

Yes, but that doesn't make it acceptable five years later to.....

It does not, if what you say is true. We say it is another of your fantasies. What is accepted, however, or at least what is not disputed, is that you returned to the headmaster
'
s office the very next day, did you not? You went back for more
'
punishment
'
.

At his behest, yes.

And on this second occasion there was further sexual activity between you?

Yes.

Only this time, among other activities, you meted out punishment, did you not? You gave him 12 strokes of the cane.

He asked for it. I felt I owed him. He told me about what happened in
Iraq
. He said he had much to atone for.
Look, I know where this is going...

Do you, indeed. You may know where it's going, but I'm not sure you know the consequences either for yourself or for my client if these wild allegations end up into court.

Nan
: Mr. Rolandson, we are fully aware of the penalties for kidnap, if that is what you mean.

And we, for our part, are aware of the consequences of making wrongful allegations.

When did you next see Mr. Montgomery?

About five years later. I bumped into him in
Sloane Square
.

You did more than just bump into him, you re-connected. You started dating, didn't you? You even went to live with him in
Hong Kong
. You resumed your relationship.

Yes.

In every way?

Meaning what?

Meaning that you continued to indulge in fetishism, some would say sado-masochistic activities?

No. That's not how it was. What we did was play.

But spanking was regularly part of that
'
play
'
?

As it is for many lovers. I was in love with him and genuinely believed he loved me too. That doesn't mean I can forgive him for what he did.

I would remind you, Miss Jones, that so far we are dealing only with allegations, allegations that my client vigorously denies. Let's look at some other evidence that might cause you to rethink your position. I want to take you back to your time together in
Hong Kong
.
You have admitted my client regularly spanked you, in fact you used to send him coded emails describing how much you looked forward to it - I have a stack of them here, if your memory needs prompting - but that wasn't enough for you, was it?

It really was. It was all I wanted. To me, erotic discipline is simply that, erotic. It
'
s not about inflicting pain, it
'
s about trust, tactile stimulation, intimacy, building arousal that leads to making love.

And yet you upped the ante, didn't you? I put it to you that entirely on your own initiative you went to a manufacturer in
Hong Kong
and bought a rattan cane, similar to the one he handed to you in his office on your last day of school. You gave it to him for his birthday. That was a nice touch. What did you imagine he was going to do with it?

I never imagined he would beat me with it.

But he did use it on you in way that you brought you mutual enjoyment, did he not? As you have just described, as a means of
'
building arousal
'
.

Yes, but there
'
s a vast difference…

Is there? When he spanked you, some spankings were harder than others, were they not?
Sometimes he was rough, and, depending on your mood, you liked that, didn
'
t you, you liked being forcibly bent over, having your panties ripped off?