Bayrel was shocked when Serenah attacked Amanah. Serenah was always the quiet, obedient child. She rarely used violence or even stood up for herself. His surprise only lasted long enough for him to realize she was actually hurting Amanah. He rushed over and hit Serenah in her back with a blow hard enough to double her over, stopping her rampage for a second. He grabbed her, hauling her off Amanah and into the air. He body-slammed her, knocking the breath out of Serenah so she couldn't scream or resist. He glared, pinning her in place with his foot.
"Ungrateful brat! How dare you attack the Crown Princess, your sister! She is better than you in every way. I see that you are nothing more than a little beast who needs to be tamed and punished to know your place!" he snarled.
"Get off! I will not let you blame me for Amanah's carelessness! I didn't spend all that time working hard for her sake for my twin to discard it! You always take her side even when she is the one in the wrong!" snapped Serenah.
Bayrel's fury boiled over. How dare she defy him!
"Silence! You just can't stop lying, can you? I have a cure for your lies and your defiance."
He moved his foot, bent over, grabbed her hair, and jerked her to her feet. "I think a trip to the punishment chamber should remind you of who you are dealing with," he growled and dragged Serenah from the room with Amanah following closely behind. Bayrel ignored his guards, who brought up the rear. He quickly took the group to the punishment chamber. The younger guard hurriedly unlocked the door and stepped aside.
Bayrel turned to him. "You both are relieved for the next four hours."
The guards bowed and left swiftly. Bayrel glanced down at Serenah, who clawed at his hand, trying to get him to release his grip on her hair. He dug his fingers in more, pulling a yelp from her. Unconcerned with her pain and feelings, he forced her to the center where the shackles hung from the ceiling. Serenah renewed her struggles. Bayrel laughed at the futility of her actions. He turned his gaze to Amanah.
"Strip your sister and choose her punishment."
"No!" howled Serenah.
Bayrel let go of her hair, spun her around toward him, and punched her in the belly. Serenah sank to her knees, wheezing and clutching at her hurt midsection. Amanah pounced on her, ferociously ripping Serenah's clothes off until she was nude. Bayrel watched impassively as his oldest chose a riding crop from the instruments available. He forced Serenah to her feet, ignoring her whimpers of pain. He yanked her arms up and secured her wrists with the shackles. He stepped back, watching as she dangled by her wrists, her toes barely touching the floor.
He walked around Serenah once before grabbing her jaw in a bruising grip. "You brought this on yourself. All you had to do was obey my orders. That's not so hard to do."
"You're blind, Father! Amanah is suckering you, and the biggest fool is you!" Serenah cried out in frustration.
Bayrel laughed and backhanded her. Serenah's head snapped to the side from the blow, a trickle of blood running from her nose and split lip. "Even now you lie. And I am not your father. You do not have the right to call me that, you worthless ingrate."
"Father, can I punish her now?" Amanah asked, coming up to his right side.
He studied Serenah's face, chuckling at her enraged expression directed at Amanah.
"Of course, my darling daughter." He considered how many blows he would give Serenah. He dragged out the silence to make Serenah sweat. "Here is what we shall do."
He grinned indulgently at Amanah's happy smile. "You shall whip her twice the number of failing grades that were on your report card. After you finish, I shall add mine for disregarding my order, attacking the Crown Princess, disrespecting my authority, and ignoring the proper addressing of the King."
Amanah clapped her hands together with a wide smile. "Thank you, Father." She stood on tiptoe and kissed his cheek.
"I hate you both! I hate you so much!" Serenah snarled, twisting in her restraints.
Bayrel and Amanah ignored her. He gestured at Serenah. "Amanah, my dear, leave your marks wherever you like." He grabbed Serenah by the jaw again and squeezed until she yelped in pain, her eyes blazing with her anger.
"You will count each blow. If you forget or miscount, you will receive four additional blows for each missed count. Do you understand, Serenah?"
He shook his head in mock dismay at her silence. Let her try to act tough. It would get her nowhere.
He stepped back and gestured for Amanah to get started.
Amanah smirked. "Oh, dear sister, I'm going to enjoy this."
Amanah raised her hand, the riding crop whistling through the air as it connected with Serenah's back.
"One," Serenah whispered, the fight draining out of her.
Bayrel was pleased. This session would be very productive.