"No," Zoe said, "clear it your fuckin' self."

She flounced off into the kitchen.

"Come back here, Zoe," Hilary said, "or you know what will happen."

"Fuck off," Zoe said from the kitchen. "I had to serve, not clean up your crap."

"Antony," Hilary said, "she's not going to learn."

"I know," he said and swung to his feet. "Patrick, get the bar in."

Annabelle sat horrified as Antony went into the kitchen. She heard the sound of a slap and Zoe screamed once, before yelling and fighting at her father. It didn't last long. Very soon she was being hustled in by him, struggling, her maid's uniform already torn slightly at the neck, showing the top of her little white slip.

Annabelle wanted to sink into the carpet. She tried to move, but Lee and Kirby had moved their chairs closer and were blocking her way out. She stared at the table top, but had to look up as she heard Patrick coming back.

He was pushing a piece of apparatus with a padded metal bar across it at about waist height. But that wasn't what gave it its menace. There were straps and metal rings all over it, particularly around the base. It looked as if someone could be tied to it in almost any position that was wanted.

"Good," Hilary said. "Now, Patrick, would you like to administer the punishment?"

"Sure," he said and went back into the other room. Suddenly his grey business suit had terrible menace in it and Annabelle found herself trembling.

"I really must…" she started.

"Shut up, you're getting very boring," Hilary said.

Annabelle felt as if she was going to break into teats. She tried to get up, but suddenly Kirby and Lee had their hands on her arms.

"Sit down," Kirby said, "and watch. This is for you too, if you don't behave."

Annabelle broke out into a sweat. She had no real idea of what he meant, and she was in such a state of shock that she sat down, trembling from head to toe.