BY THE NUMBERS
execution/ strangle

   She was somewhere between twelve and twenty, a slightly build girl with a young face. Given that she was already engaged in unlawful acts she should be at the upper end of the range but the fact that she still could pass for younger argued that she was not that old. Small matter given the facts presented him. He was a captain in the city guard and as such held vast powers over those who stood before him. Like her. He sat back as the thing began to play out before his high desk.
   She stood in the doorway to the small hearing room and waited. She had been given strict orders as to her conduct, remain silent unless asked a direct question, stand with eyes downcast unless ordered differently, obey instantly any order given, and accept any punishment without struggle.  A few feet ahead of her was a table. A man dressed in the black of a barrister sat at one end while a guard officer sat at the other. Behind the table was a large desk on a platform and behind it was a large man with captains insignia on the shoulders of his uniform. Off to one side stood two other guardsmen, one the sergeant that had arrested her. A few guards completed the set. 
   Behind her the sergeant spoke up. “ the prisoner will walk to the table and stand quietly.”  She did so as a shiver of fear passed up her back. It felt cold in the room, perhaps it was the danger she was in and not the air. Still she shivered under the thin cotton shift she was wearing. The stone floor was cold under her bare feet so maybe that was it. 
    “ Lieutenant, state your case.”
    “ Very well sir, this person was caught in the act of robbing and assaulting a citizen. With a male accomplice she injured him and was in the act of stealing his property when she was taken by Sergeant Hocker  and his men. The other robber resisted with a short sword and was killed at the scene.  She was brought here for questioning and then presented to you sir.”  
    “ I see. Sergeant Hocker, how was it that you were able to catch the thieves in the act. Most are careful to avoid such things. Did you have some intelligence or were you just lucky?”
     “ Sir, a bit of both, sir.  I had heard of a couple operating in the area and had deployed my squad in an open formation with a plainclothes man as a forward scout for each group. We stayed far enough back to be out of sight in the darker areas as we patrolled. While I never would have spread my men out so much had there been large gangs in the area I judged it safe enough and the best way to operate under the conditions. Guardsman Connors was the scout for the group I was with and when he gave us the signal we rushed forward and a short fight ensued. The male choose to resist with a hidden short sword and was killed. We later found out he was the prisoner’s father. The victim was injured but not seriously and there was nothing else unusual to report, sir.”
     “ Mr. Smyth, have you reviewed the case and has the medical report been done? Do you wish to ask any questions of anyone here?”
     The barrister shuffled his papers before answering. “Sir, I have no questions at this time although I may have some later. The medical report shows the male was killed by a single thrust to the lower chest. Death was almost instant. The corpse had sword calluses on its right hand and was wearing a scabbard that matched the weapon found at the scene. The female in unharmed except for minor bruises from her capture. She is not with child, indeed she is still virgin. Neither one bears any signs or marks of mistreatment or torture. I have reviewed the case and I find no reason to doubt anything presented. I believe the facts to be accurate.”
    “ Is the injured party present? If so let him come forward and speak.”
    “ Sir, I am the injured one. My name is Samuel Addison and I am a bookkeeper for the Pig and Cow inn. I was returning home when I was approached by her. She was asking for help in running away from a cruel master who desired her in an unnatural way. While I was distracted by her the man accosted me and threw me to the ground and injured me. The two of them were caught in the act of robbing me by the guard patrol.”
    “ Thank you Mr. Addison. As to your injuries, was blood drawn or was a bone broken? And if so do you wish to claim vengeance on your assaulter?”
    “ Sir, yes both blood and bone were involved and I do claim my vengeance.”
    “ Very well then, you shall have it. Blood for blood. Guards  strip the prisoner and bend her over the table.”
     The thin shift was quickly ripped from her body and she was slammed down face first over the table and held there. One guard held each arm and each ankle while another smeared grease over her crotch. “Mr. Addison you may now claim her body and her maidenhead as your vengeance.”
     She heard and felt him take his place behind her.  The first time a man’s member entered her it was jammed in with no regard for her comfort or feelings. He just rammed in in and pounded away at her. Her cries of pain and shame were ignored as he continued the brutal assault on her virgin body.  She had hoped he would finish soon but he displayed an amazing virility, hammering her slight body on and on until she was almost beaten senseless from the continued onslaught.  Then he changed tempo, a few short quick strokes deep in her led to his climax. She felt the spray of his seed as he spasmed. The shame of her rape burned almost as much as his seed. She was left laying limply and dripping his spunk as he pulled out. Almost unable to comprehend what had happened to her she lay helpless as the left over pains washed over her.
    “ Mr. Addison, are you satisfied with your vengeance?”
    “ Yes sir, I am. Thank you sir for allowing me to claim it. You are most kind.”
    “  You may step back now. Stay if you wish and watch.”
    “ The prisoner  will stand and face the bench.”  She was hauled to a standing position and stood there only with the aid of a guard holding each arm.  Her inner thighs were wet with her blood and his spunk but she sensed that that was only a very small part of her  problems.
    “ Mr. Smyth, do you see any need to refer this case to a full court or to seek any further facts? Do you wish to ask anything? “
    “ No sir, I do not. You may proceed.”
    “ Prisoner, you have refused to provide a name and so you shall remain nameless. You were taken in the act of armed robbery, you injured a man in the commission of that robbery,  you resisted lawful arrest .  I find you guilty by overwhelming evidence and I find no mitigating facts that would allow me to be merciful. Therefore we will continue here and now. You will kneel and raise your head to look at my face.”
    She was pushed to her knees and she winced as the rough stone bruised them. A  hand in her hair forced her to look upward. What was happening ?  There was movement behind her but she could not look. Her hands were still tie and now cords secured her ankles to her upper thighs. Two sticks were placed around her neck. One behind and the other in front. Out of the corner of her eye she could see that they were joined at one end by a short piece of cord. Before she could do more than wonder at it the captain spoke to her.
   “ I here bye order your execution for your crimes. May God be merciful to you. Kill her.”
   Before she 
    Could do more than take a deep breath to scream no the sticks were slammed  together and tied tightly. Her windpipe was crushed and the scream was trapped in her throat.  She tried to fight but the guards just held her as she struggled. Her pulse pounded in her ears. She tried to breathe but it was useless. Her father had always promised her riches and comfort but he had led her instead to rape and death. She tried to curse him and those others responsible for the sticks on her throat and the blood on her legs but could no longer form thoughts other that the burning need for air. One minute, then two, then three, she continued her losing battle. She was growing tired and slowing. She needed to close her eyes and sleep but the fire in her chest would not allow it. By the fifth minute the hands holding her let go and she fell face first to the stone floor. The broken nose and the other injuries from the impact were unnoticed  as her struggle wound down. She was very close to death. A trickle of  piss leaked out and washed away some of her blood. A few last small movements and one last shudder and it was over. She was past pain and shame. 
   Her body was left there on the floor for the one hour the law demanded and then it was washed and hung by its wrists in the execution square. The strangling sticks told the story. During the night she was touched and fondled by boys out of there natural need to explore a woman’s body and she was used by others with darker passions and needs. In the morning she was removed and her body fed to the hounds.