SSC2007-09: Protecting Billy (M/b, spank, abuse, edgy) [picture: table] [498 words]

This story is fiction and deals with child abuse. If such a subject is offensive, uninteresting or if you are a minor (i.e., child) please leave now. The SSC picture of the doctor's table at http://socsexualityspanking.org/ssc/2007/pictures/table.jpg was the inspiration for this story.

This work is copyright by the author and commercial use is prohibited without permission. Personal/private copies are permitted only if complete including the copyright notice.

The author would appreciate your comments -- pro and con, including constructive criticism, and suggestions. E-mail: YLeeCoyote@mail.com

Protecting Billy
by
Y Lee Coyote

It was a Sunday and I was catching up on my paperwork in my office when the bell rang. The doorman had not called up. At first I thought that I should ignore it but it was very persistent and there was even some banging on the door. I am a physician so it could be an emergency.

It was two boys who I knew lived upstairs with their mother. One had been crying and was being held up by the other. He was very pale. "Doc, my brother is hurt." I couldn't leave them standing on my doorstep to wait for EMS so I took them into the examining room. "On the table, please."

I expected him to sit but the older one said: "Bend over the end of the table, Billy." and then pulled him up. The paper worked as a lubricant. "It's his butt, doc." he said as he reached under and undid Billy's pants. Billy's pants were messy but I did not expect what I saw when they came down. The boy's briefs were red; soaked with bright red blood. I had not seen such a mess since I was a field surgeon in the war.

I took a picture and started to treat the lad. "What happened?" I demanded.

"Vincent beat him with a lamp cord. He pulled down his pants and whipped him bad." said Kenny.

"Who's Vincent?"

"Mom's druggy boyfriend."

"Call your mom. I need to speak to her; I have to know if Billy has any allergies."

"Can't reach her now. Billy doesn't have any. Please help my little brother, doctor, please." Kenny pleaded.

They did not have a family doctor. I did what I could -- pain relievers, antibiotics and a dressing. "Did Vincent hurt him any other way? Knock him about?"

"Not this time."

I called 911 for an ambulance and the police. Billy needed to be checked for other trauma and observed. Vincent had to be locked up.

The officers saw and were horrified. Kenny opened his apartment door for them. They busted Vincent for drugs immediately. The child abuse charges would be added a few hours later by CPS. The bloody lamp cord was taken as evidence along with drugs. Conviction and incarceration were certain.

In the hospital the trauma team gave Billy a thorough check. There were some not quite healed bruises but nothing else of note. Billy did not want to talk. Kenny reported that Vincent often hit Billy. Today, Billy was slow to get out of the bathroom and Vincent used the lamp cord. He swung it at Billy's naked bottom more than a score of times and Billy screamed for everyone. He was crying by the time he told me. I was glad that I recorded it so that he did not have repeat it over and over.

Their mother did not believe it. Fortunately the judge did and issued a protection order and set impossibly high bail. The boys were safe for now.

The End

© Copyright A.I.L. August 9, 2007

Wow.

Well, the author certainly captured the essence of "edgy."  The first read-through had me feeling as if I were reading a news article rather than a short story.  The narrative is cold and dispassionate, which works through most of the story but had me wishing for the occasional run-on sentence. However, it still managed to raise goosebumps and a feeling of discomfort.  All told, it was a very good, very unsettling interpretation of picture that inspired it.

One of the common problems SSC stories have is that they don't have much in the way of plot and / or an original story to tell.  This definitely is not a problem for this entry.  The author tells what is an utterly wrenching story of abuse and love in a very small space.

Yet, perhaps because the story itself *is* so strong, one problem with this story is that we're not clear why the narrator is telling it or who to.  I think what would take this story to the next level would be a few strong hints as to why the doctor is telling this and to whom he's telling it.

Excellent use of the photograph.

It's a very clear and strong narrative, but at a basic level I'm not sure what I can take from it as a reader. Some stories work by arousing, or entertaining - with a compelling plot, rich characterisation, or just the music of the prose. This isn't any of those. The events are well told, but what significance they have for the characters isn't clear. We don't know the kids well enough (indeed, probably *can't* know them well enough, in the space available) to feel much concern for their welfare, and almost nothing is revealed of the doctor himself - this is an event in which he's involved, but which doesn't much *involve* him. The intangible something which turns a sequence of events into a *story* doesn't quite reveal itself.

This story was very well-written, action packed, and very emotional. It fits well with the picture; made me really visualize what was happening while I was reading.  And you're right to say it was edgy because the idea of the story made me slightly uncomfortable.  Of course, I know abuse happens, but it's hard to think about and read about.

Good story.  Well done.