want to speak to you later. But stay here for the moment while we see what the two girls have to say.

Lisa, almost weeping, sat on the floor, her head buried in her hands while Gudrun stood with her head bowed. There was a deathly silence in the room.

'All right,' said Aunt Maria, 'I shall put the belt about you first Gudrun. Get over the bed.'

It almost seemed as if the girls were used to the situation for Gudren at once did as she was told, placing herself over the side of my bed and raising her skirt to reveal her knickers.

Then to my even greater astonishment my aunt stood over her, and raising the belt, then brought it down firmly across Gudrun's bottom. The girl shuddered and moved on the bed as if attempting to avoid the next stroke of the belt. But to no avail for my aunt brought it down just as firmly across her two buttocks, drawing a sharp cry of pain from the girl.

Three more strokes were administered after which she was told to get up and Lisa, from a nod, took her place. Once again I watched a girl pulling up her dress to expose her knickers while she waited the swish of the belt.

I was embarrassed and annoyed with myself for having allowed the situation to arise. I felt sorry for the girls but couldn't help feeling a little complacent that, at least, my aunt couldn't use her belt on me. But I was in

for a surprise if I thought I was immune from all punishment at the hand of Aunt Maria.

Finishing with Lisa she now turned to me.

'I am disappointed in you, Edward. I felt I could trust you. But perhaps you are not wholly to blame. However, if I find out again that you have gone against my word I wouldn't hesitate to treat you very much as you have seen me deal with the girls. What is more if I find you conniving with the two girls and working against me I would make you administer the punishment on their bottoms. I don't think you would exactly enjoy that, would you?'

I had no answer. I was bewildered by what had happened. But in some strange way I could not understand at the time I felt that my aunt hadn't altogether been surprised, nor had she been disappointed, at what had taken place.

I got an inkling of the fact that by finding me at fault she now had some sort of claim or hold over me. I was to find out later that day that this instinctive feeling of mine was correct.

'You will come to my room at eight o'clock,' she ordered me. 'You two girls will stay in your own rooms after that time and you will only leave them if I summon either or both of you. Is that clearly understood?'

'Yes, Madam,' the two girls said in chorus.