CHAPTER THREE

The following Sunday, I know for sure I’m going to hell. I think about lying

and telling Daddy I’m sick so that I don’t have to go to church. If I’m

already going to hell, then another lie won’t be that bad.

“Melody! Now.” Daddy shouts at me from downstairs.

I’m dressed – my floral dress hitting my knees with my black leather shoes

on. But I still sit on my bed, feeling like my legs are full of lead and there’s

no way I can walk down the stairs.

And then I hear Daddy’s footsteps grow louder as he comes upstairs. When

he opens the door, he finds me sitting on my bed, my head down, tears

threatening to leak out of my eyes.

“Melody! We are now ten minutes late for church. You’re already getting a

spanking later for this behavior. If you don’t come now, it will be my belt.”

That does it. I finally look up, my eyes wide with horror. I’ve never been

spanked with Daddy’s belt before. It’s not even the fact that I know it will

be so painful. It’s more the fact that if Daddy thinks I need his belt, then it

surely means I’ve disappointed him more than I ever have.

Choking down a sob, I scramble downstairs. Daddy doesn’t say anything

as we drive to church. He keeps his hands wrapped tightly around the

steering wheel so I don’t even have his hand on my knee to calm me down.

I don’t move, but inside me, it feels like there’s a thousand squirming

worms.

Uncle Andrew is just stepping out to the front of the church when we walk

down the aisle. I keep my head down, but I know everyone is watching us.

Thankfully, people have saved our usual seats by the front. I glance up only

once, catching Uncle Andrew’s worrying look, before I bow my head again.

Thankfully, everyone probably thinks I’m bowing my head in prayer, so I

don’t look too out of sorts.

Uncle Andrew’s sermon is over way too quickly. There isn’t even a

question of whether I will go to confession. Daddy knows something is

wrong, so he merely nods his head in the direction of the confessional line

and then goes to talk with some people he knows.The line is longer this week, but moves quickly so that I’m soon back in

the small room, the door closed, the familiar scent of frankincense filling

my nose. It does calm me a little, but not enough.

“Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. It’s been one week since my last

confession.”

“Hello, my child. “Please. Tell me what’s on your mind.”

I could do what I did last week and start with small confessions, but there’s

no point. My conscience weighs heavily on me, and all I can do is hope for

God’s absolution, even though I’ve surely committed the biggest sin of all.

“Father, I was so naughty this week.”

“Yes, my child? Naughtier than last week?” Uncle Andrew’s words are

kind, but they only make me cringe. He must think I’m exaggerating.

There’s no way he can think about the bad things I’ve done.

“I tried so hard, Father,” I say, almost sobbing. “I really did. I cleaned the

house from top to bottom. I made all of Daddy’s favorite foods. I even went

for long walks when I was tempted.”

“But you were tempted?”

“Yes,” I whisper. “It was Thursday night. Daddy was at his bible study

class, so I knew he wouldn’t come home. I thought – I thought maybe I

would just have a peek. Just so I could see that those magazines weren’t

that bad. That they didn’t make me that tingly.”

“What happened when you peeked?”

“There was a new magazine in the box, Father. I looked at it and there

were pictures of two men and one woman. She had another school uniform

on, this one was grey and blue plaid. Her hair was blonde, though, just like

mine. And the two men were a bit older.”

“Like how old your Daddy is?” Uncle Ted says. That same fabric rustling

sound from last week starts, and something a little squishier, like the sound

when I wash my hands.

“Yes, like that old,” I confirm. “One man had his cock in the girl’s pussy

while the other man had his cock in her mouth.”

I think I hear Uncle Ted murmur something, but I don’t want to be rude

and ask him what it was.“Tell me, my child, what happened next?”

I cover my face, so embarrassed. “My tingles came back. Stronger than

ever. I – I didn’t mean to. I’m not sure what even happened, but it was like

my body acted on its own. All of a sudden, I realized that my hand was

under my skirt.” I break off. “Under my panties,” I say quieter.

Uncle Ted makes more noises, and that skin-slapping sound continues.

“Did you keep touching yourself, my child?”

“N-no. Once I realized what I was doing, I dropped my hand. I shoved all

the magazines back and ran out of the room.”

“That’s good, little lamb. That means you showed strength in adversity.

Knowing that what you did was wrong means you have a strong

relationship with God. It means that, deep down, you know the difference

between right and wrong.”

“It does?” I ask, hopeful for the first time in three days.

Uncle Andrew’s voice sounds softer now. “Yes, little lamb. God loves you

and forgives you.”

I’m suddenly very happy I came to confession, but Uncle Ted isn’t done

yet.

“But little lamb, there is someone else you need to ask forgiveness from.”

“I can’t,” I whimper. “I don’t want to disappoint Daddy.”

Uncle Andrew sighs. “I know that last week I gave you a choice to talk to

your daddy. But this week, there is no choice. You’ve strayed too far. You

have God’s forgiveness, but he is not the only one you have sinned against.

You know that you belong to your Daddy. It will be hard, but if you talk to

him, he will forgive you.”

The rest is all formalities. Uncle Ted gives me my penance, and we say a

short prayer together. My knees are shaking as I exit the confessional. The

church is empty, and so is the parking lot. I find Daddy next to his car,

waiting in the shade of it.

“Ready, Melody?” he asks. His voice is kinder than this morning. It’s

supposed to make me feel better, but it’s a stark reminder that Daddy thinks

whatever sin I’ve committed has been absolved by Uncle Ted and God. He

doesn’t realize that I need to confess to him, too.“Yes, Daddy,” I answer, my voice shaking a little. I will confess to him, I

promise, but not until tonight. Today, I just want to enjoy one last perfect

with Daddy before he realizes what a sinner I am.

Back home, I settle into the kitchen, where at least the comforting routine of

making dinner soothes me. I opt for a traditional lasagna recipe, and I make

everything from scratch, so it takes me hours. The busy work soothes me,

and when Uncle Andrew comes over, I feel like I’m myself again.

“Melody, be a good girl and grab us a beer, please,” says Daddy from the

other room.

The lasagna is finished, so I pop it in the oven and set a timer. It will take a

little while, so I grab the beers and go to hang out with Daddy and Uncle

Ted.

“Ah, there’s my little lamb,” says Uncle Ted sweetly. “Come here and give

me a hug.”

I pass Daddy his beer and then bring one to Uncle Andrew. His warm arms

envelop me in a hug, and then he sits down, pulling me into his lap. The

football game is on the TV, and for a little while, it’s nice. Just the three of

us, enjoying a peaceful afternoon.

Daddy finishes the beer and places the empty bottle on the coffee table. He

sighs, and I instantly tense up. In all the turmoil of the day, I forgot about

Daddy’s promise earlier. He needs to spank me.

“Let’s get this over before dinner, Melody,” Daddy says to me.

“Another spanking, little lamb?” Uncle Andrew looks down at me, slightly

disappointed.

“Yes,” I admit. “I made Daddy and me late for church this morning.”

“Yes. I admit I was a little worried my favorite niece wouldn’t show up. It

was nice of the Gilmores to save you a seat.”

“Yes, it was,” says Daddy gruffly. “Let’s go, Melody. I’m getting mighty

tired of waiting for you.”

Uncle Andrew gives me a half-smile as I slide off his lap. Then, just like I

did a week ago, I remove all my clothes, making sure to fold them up

neatly. Daddy doesn’t like a mess.I settle myself on Daddy’s lap, parting my legs slightly. He runs his big

hands over my bum, soothing away some of my worries. My skin stung for

the whole next day after my last spanking, so I know Daddy is worried

about hurting me again.

“Twenty, Melody.”

“Yes, Daddy.”

The first spanking hits me hard. I gasp – it feels harder than last week.

Another comes down, then more, right after another, some of them right on

top of each other. I’m crying much faster than normal. Sobbing as Daddy

hits the back of my thighs, hard over each cheek. I’m tingling like earlier,

but also in so much pain.

When the twentieth spanking hits me hard, right where my legs are parted,

almost on my pussy, I can barely say the word.

“Damnit, Melody,” Daddy huffs out. “I don’t like hurting you like this, but

I don’t know what else to do.”

“I know, Daddy. I’m so sorry. I’ll be better, I promise.”

Daddy’s hand, usually so warm, feels cool next to my burning-hot skin as

he gently rubs over my abused flesh. He murmurs soft words to me, and

slowly I stop crying.

“Oh, Melody. I just want you to be a good girl.”

“I will, Daddy. I promise.”

Finally, Daddy pulls me into my lap. I sigh happily, knowing that in his

arms, I’m safe. Our cuddle is interrupted by his phone, and Daddy

begrudgingly checks it.

“Shit, it’s work. Sorry, baby girl, I’ve got to take this.”

I’m not ready for my cuddle to be over. I’m still breathing heavily, and my

bum is still on fire.

“Here, come cuddle with me, Melody,” says Uncle Andrew gently. Daddy

gives him a look of gratitude and deposits me in his lap as he gets up to take

his phone call.

“You okay, Melody?” Uncle Andrew asks. His fingers trace the tear tracks

along my cheek.“Yes, I’m better now.”

“Have you given more thought to what I counseled you about this

morning?” He smooths my hair back from my face, kissing my forehead as

he does so. His other hand settles on my lower back, framing me with his

muscular arms.

“I’m going to talk to Daddy tonight,” I whisper.

“Good,” Uncle Andrew nods. “Your stepdad loves you, Melody. If you ask for his help, he will help you.”