Monica looked behind her. Some boys had come upbehind her, and she and Nick had been surrounded, but when Blake had tripped up the stairs, Nick had whirled around and two of the boys who had come up behind them saw the gun and backed away. She got up the stairs and burst out of the house. Nick followed behind her. Oh Geez, she thought. This was bad. This was very bad. Nick had asked her about the gun during their phone call, and she’d said yes, but she never thought he’d have to bring it out. She hoped that would buy the boys’ silence. She tipped Nick $300 and drove him home. “Sorry Nick, but I can’t do this anymore. Maybe for a long while. I’ll call you if I need you, okay?”

Nick was scary looking, but kind of a nice guy. “You okay, Monica?”

Sitting in front of Nick’s small house, she sighed. “I wish I knew.”

Monica spent the rest of Christmas vacation brooding a bit. She treated herself to a shopping spree at the mall with some of the money. The rest she put back in her cedar chest. She was planning on that money accompanying her to Georgetown.

* * *

School started up again in early January, and Houlihan sat at his desk. Blake had called him over Christmas break in a shaky voice, telling him he wasn’t going to keep an eye on Monica anymore. He regretted telling him about the party in the first place. He explained how Monica wanted his silence, but that he couldn’t guarantee what any of the other 29 boys would say. She had asked that they keep it quiet. He admitted he was looking for an exchange, either money or sex, but … well, Monica had left with her bodyguard. He wouldn’t say anything about the gun because he was terrified. Houlihan thought something was up, but didn’t press it. He confronted Monica about it during one of their sessions after school.

“So what did you do over Christmas?” he asked her. Part of their ritual was to talk about what was going on in their lives, before the spanking and tickling commenced. It was a weird combination of being in both the confessional and at the therapist’s office.

“Not much,” Monica responded.

She didn’t look as good as she usually did. Tired maybe, or anxious.

“Did you go to any parties?”

That got her attention. “No.” But her face had gone a shade whiter.

Houlihan sat back in his chair. “I don’t believe you.”

“I didn’t! I swear!” Now, Monica really wasn’t looking good. Her eyes had a slightly hysterical look.

Houlihan whipped open his cell phone. He went to the file containing pictures, and showed a picture of her license plate, and also other cars parked on the street. “What night was this? Where were you?”

Busted. Monica knew. Somehow, he knew. “Who told you?” She raged. “Who the fuck told you?

“That’s a secret, Monica. I told you, you needed to behave. This is strike one. You promised to be a good girl and not do any more stripping parties, or be the school slut. You agreed. And you lied to me.”

“It was for a lot of money. I would have been a fool to turn it down.”

“But instead you were a fool, and didn’t turn it down. For that, I’m increasing your punishment. I’m going to have sex with you. I can still give you Georgetown, but you will give me sex. Whatever I want, you’ll be giving it to me. I thought we could make this pleasant, but you’ve disobeyed me.

The school has known about your shenanigans for a long time, but didn’t know how to make you stop. When I hired in, they warned me about you. They said I should talk to you; get you to straighten up. You came on to me in the office, and you said you wanted to be spanked and tickled. You got that, because your little boys wouldn’t do that to you. And now, you pretty much have to give up everything else and report to me. Shape up and do what I say and get into Georgetown, or be amongst the 19,000 who try to get in. The school’s acceptance rate is 17 percent. Do you think, even with your grades, you’d be able to get in? You’re not that special. No extra-curricular activities, except your dancing and whoring around.”

Monica was silent. “So now what?”

“Take off your clothes.” Even now, Houlihan was getting hard. He was planning to fuck her until she was sore.