Country Mile

THIS WEEKEND

Adam approached the barn and paused, contemplating his plans once more before fully opening the door that had been left ajar.

He walked in to see Genna laying stomach down on a blanket she had draped over a hay bale. Her knees were bent with her feet crossed at the ankles, swaying slightly. She looked the picture of ease when she glanced up at him and smiled before returning to her work. Though it was but a mere fraction of a second before her pencil stilled in her hand and she slowly dragged her eyes back up, stopping to linger upon the paint stirrer in his clutch.

When her eyes met his, he braced for backlash, but needlessly so. Instead, she simply laid her pencil down and stood.

Adam worked to assess his daughter with new eyes; ones not tainted by the knowledge of the things she had partaken in that lead them here, but ones that would view her for how she was in this very moment.

What he saw was a stark contrast to what she once was, not just when they had first met, but even when they had been visiting Anne's aunt: bitter and rebellious. Vastly different from the young girl before him who was both poised and contrite.

Genna had already accepted the consequences of her actions without knowing what those consequences were going to be. She saw an implement in his hand, but didn't so much as utter a single grievance about it. That in itself was one of Adam's end goals. For him to have gained the ability to teach his daughter how to take accountability of her actions, and for her to accept the ramifications that come from poor choices, and therefore learn how to avoid repeating them.

Crossing the floor, he did his best to ignore the way she wiped nervous clammy palms upon her jean shorts, and he hardened his heart when her eyes took on the look of a baby deer yearning to run.

He took her face gently in his grasp and used his thumb to stroke her cheek; hoping that though they both knew he was there to discipline her, the action would tell her he still wanted to use soft hands.

Not wanting to forestall any longer, Adam finally spoke.

"I understand why you took such great lengths to protect Rory, but do you understand why you can never go about helpin' someone—anyone, regardless of the reasons—like that again?"

A sheen of unshed tears made Genna's eyes glisten as she whispered, "Yes, sir."

"It was not only dangerous for her, but dangerous for you."

"I know."

"Do you?" he bent down a little closer to her to truly look into her eyes. "Do you really understand how dangerous it was?"

Genna nodded into his hand. "Yes, sir, I do.."

"This spankin' you're about to get is a hell of a lot easier to take than any of the other outcomes this could have lead to. Correct?"

"Y-yes, sir."

"Alright then," Adam said with a final nod and released her face. "Genevieve Lily, I want you to turn around, then bend and put your hands flat on the blanket."

Hearing her full name always made her feel as though she were in deeper trouble, so slowly, she did as she was told.

"Do not reach back, y'hear?"

"Yes, sir."

Adam gripped the waistband of her jean shorts and raised his arm, stalling for a moment. Though he knew she had earned it, he found it was always harder to punish her when she had already accepted it and there was no temper to quell.

Not wanting to drag it out any further, he let the piece of wood fall and winced at the sound that reverberated around the barn.

Genna made a guttural groan and fisted the blanket as he continued on.