Josie raised her hand.

"No," she said to herself, "this isn't right."

Rain waited.

"Sunshine," Josie said, "I can't do it. I can't spank you." She gently slid the little girl off her lap. "I just can't do it."

"Then could Daddy do it tonight?" Rain asked.

"I don't think that would be fair to him," Josie answered.

"But I've got to be spanked!" Rain cried out.

"Why?"

"Because," Rain said, "a spanking HURTS, and I have to be HURT for what I did."

"Sunshine," Josie said, "if you mean that you have to be hurt for... for what happened to Dante... that part was
an accident. You never meant for it to happen."

"Mom," Rain said seriously, "when people drive drunk, they don't mean to hurt anyone, but if they do... they get charged with...
what's it called?"

"Vehicular manslaughter."

"Don't you see, Mom? You should punish me for what happened to Dante, because if I hadn't taken your gun to school..."

"Rain," Josie said, "I'm not going to punish you for what happened to Dante. In the first place, it wouldn't bring him back,
in the second place, you are a child and the law is easier on a child than on an adult, and in the third place, I still say that
I am at least as much to blame for leaving my gun out."

"Maybe..." Rain hesitated. "Maybe you could ask Joe or Paulina to come over and do it? Or we could go to their house?"

"Tell you what," Josie said. "I'll call Joe and see what he says."

#####

Joe heard his cell phone chime.

"Hello?"

"Joe, it's Josie. I'm sorry to bother you, and I'm ashamed to ask but I need your help with something."

"Go on," Joe said.

"Rain asked me to spank her for taking my gun."

"Did you?"

"No, Joe, I couldn't, not after I was the one who left it out. And Gary and I have never spanked her."

"Did you punish her in any way?"

"Yes. I grounded her and took away her allowance."

"And she didn't think that was enough?"

"No," Josie said, "she didn't."

"Then," Joe said, "you're going to have to spank her."

"I can't," Josie repeated. "Rain suggested that maybe you or Paulina could... do it."

"No," Joe said. "Absolutely not. That's not our job, Josie, now is it?"

"No, sir," Josie whispered. "It's my job. But I'm not sure Rain deserves to be spanked, when it was my fault.."

Joe broke in, "Yes, Josie, leaving your gun out was your fault, but taking it to school was Rain's fault. And it's not so much a question of whether
she deserves to be spanked. It's a question of relieving some of the guilt she feels. And, Josie..."

"Yes, sir?"

"Maybe you should think of having to spank Rain as part of your punishment for leaving your gun out."

"Maybe," Josie conceded.

"I have to go. Paulina needs me."

####

Josie went back into the living room.

"What did Joe say?" Rain asked.

"He said that spanking you is not his or Paulina's job. He also said that I should think of spanking you as part of my punishment for leaving
my gun out."

"Then... are you going to?"

"Yes," Josie said, "but only under these conditions."

"What, Mom?"

"I will decide when to spank you, with what to spank you, how hard to spank you, and how long to spank you."

"Okay, Mom."

"Now go to your room and wait for me."

"Yes, Mom."

#####

Twenty minutes later, Josie went into Rain's room. The child looked at her, expectantly, hopefully, fearfully.

"Now, Rain," Josie said, "I'm going to give you that spanking. Do you understand what it is for?"

"Yes, Mom," Rain answered. "For taking your gun and bringing it to school."

"That's right," Josie said. She sat on the bed. "Now, Rain, bring me your hairbrush."

Rain walked over to her dresser and picked up her plastic-backed hairbrush. She handed it to Josie.

"Here, Mom."

"Get over my lap," Josie said, forcing herself to speak firmly.

Rain obeyed. She almost wished, now, that she hadn't asked her Mom to spank her. Even more did Josie wish that she hadn't agreed to do it. But
mother and daughter both knew that they had to go through with it.

"Now, Rain, I am going to give you twenty spanks, and they will be very hard. Are you ready?"

"Yes, Mom, I'm ready."

"I'm doing this because I love you," Josie said.

She lifted the brush and brought it down, WHACK! on the seat of Rain's pants.

WHACK! WHACK! WHACK! WHACK! WHACK!

"OWWWWW!"

Before it was over, Rain was sobbing, not the heartbroken sobs of guilt, but sobs that came from physical pain. And yet there was also, in
that sobbing, the sound of relief.

Finally, Josie was able to say, "One more, and this will be the hardest of all."

WHACK!

"OWWWWWWWWWWW!"

Josie helped Rain to her feet. Mother and daughter stood facing each other, but neither one of them said a word. Josie took the child in
her arms and held her close for a few minutes.

"And now," Josie said when Rain had stopped crying, "I want you to get into bed and take a good, long nap. You didn't get much sleep last night, did you?"

"No," Rain said, "I didn't."

#####

Ten minutes later, when Rain had fallen asleep, Josie went into the living room. She threw herself onto the sofa and cried bitterly.

Joe had been right. Giving Rain that spanking had been as much a punishment for Josie as receiving it had been for Rain.

Perhaps even more so.