Free Bound for Glory by Sean O'Kane Page B

slept.
     
     
    The next morning Marie served her with a bowl of lukewarm porridge and gingerly Anna sat up on her bed to eat it. She was amazed that apart from some considerable stiffness, she didn’t appear to be in too bad shape after the previous night. When Mercy entered and unlocked her cell, giving her a knowing smile, she was able to walk out with some degree of dignity.
    This time she was taken to a courtroom and found the chief inspector was installed as judge, complete with a small, powdered wig perched on his head. The furnishings were quite modern and Mercy pushed her into a waist-high dock in light coloured wood. To her left a recorder sat; opposite sat Marie and Mr Cutts and slightly above them to her right sat Chief Inspector Frazer, who once again wasted no time.
    “Court will come to session. Miss Anna Chatham is accused of fraudulently obtaining credit from Island Homes Catering and Cleaning Ltd., allowing her home to be used for the consumption of illicit substances, receiving money from said consumption and providing girls for the sexual use of her guests and receiving money for the same. In short allowing her home to be run as a brothel, and allowing drug dealing and pimping. How do you plead?”
    Anna had hardly woken properly but managed to stumble out a plea of innocent.
    The chief inspector and judge was silent for a moment, shuffling his papers and Anna got the definite feeling that she had said something they didn’t want to hear.
    “Miss Chatham,” he said eventually. “I have heard the accusations made by Miss Leroy and heard and read your confession. I have the testimony of a respected island businessman...Are you sure it’s a good idea to waste this court’s time with fruitless pleas of innocence?”
    Anna gaped at him, unsure of where to begin but eventually settled on protesting that any confession had been extracted under torture and was invalid.
    The chief inspector raised his eyebrows. “Can you substantiate these allegations?” he asked.
    Anna began to snort a reply but realised that the proof lay just under her very brief skirt, it would mean displaying her bottom for all and sundry. She blushed and stuttered into silence.
    “Very well then,” the inspector went on and before Anna could gather her thoughts, he banged his gavel. “You are found guilty on all counts, you will serve fifteen years hard labour. Take her down!” The gavel banged again and Anna nearly fainted from shock but Mercy was beside her and supporting her, bizarrely enough.
    “However,” the judge went on, “the UK government has requested extradition and we have agreed, so you will serve your sentence in the UK.”
    “You’re going home!” Mercy whispered and Anna was in such a state of confusion that she nearly hugged the constable for sheer joy. Home! Once there she could sort this nightmare out. But first there was more court business to attend to.
    The judge had descended from the bench and was talking to Mercy.
    “Bring the prisoner here, constable. I want to see if she has been badly treated.”
    Anna tottered after Mercy, down from the dock and only protested feebly when pushed hard in the back so that she collapsed, face down onto a table. She felt hands working at the hem of her skirt at the back and suddenly regained some of her senses. She kicked out and tried to rear up off the table but Mercy or someone was putting their weight on her and she couldn’t move.
    “No!..Uh, no!” she sobbed as she felt remorseless fingers tearing her knickers down again. Then she felt cool air on her buttocks and once again she was on display to everyone standing behind her. She sobbed brokenly this time, unable to fight any more; humiliated, in despair and beaten in all ways, Anna Chatham allowed her world-famous bottom to be admired and fondled by total strangers.
    “Constable Fallon,” the inspector said, running his hands along the bruised lines left by the cane. “What have I told you about