The Unknown

Prove it part 3

Shane's pov

Checkmate ladies. Time to accept defeat.

I suppress a sly grin, narrow my eyes, and sternly say, "Let's go, Carrie," as I forcefully grab her arm.

Stacey, Lisa, and Julie all shout, "NO, SHANE, WAIT!" The three of them simultaneously come to Carrie's rescue as I knew they would.

"Wait for what?" I ask angrily, still keeping a firm grasp on Carrie's arm.

Stacey's pov

That bastard knew we wouldn't let Carrie take the fall for us. If it had been me, Julie, or Lisa, he knew it wouldn't have worked but Carrie's just so sweet and innocent. We could never do that to her.

"I'm waiting, ladies!" Shane says impatiently.

I look to Julie for approval and she nods.

"You can't just punish Carrie," I say, accepting defeat.

"WHY NOT?!" Shane demands.

"Because it was all of us! We were the four girls in the woods." Seeing the icy look on Shane's face, I wish I had let Carrie take the fall. Well, almost wish. That would have been too cruel.

"Is this true, girls?" Shane looks to Lisa and Julie for confirmation, despite knowing the truth all along.

They nod in agreement.

Shane's pov

I let go of Carrie's arm and turn my back to the girls, biding my time. It took them long enough to come clean. I was afraid I was going to have to lead the sacrificial lamb to slaughter, in other words, severely punish Carrie for the sins of the flock. Now they can all suffer the same fate and endure the consequences together.

I'm not entirely sure how I want to proceed, though. If we were in England, I would probably give each of them six of the best with the cane but Americans don't seem too keen on using a thin acrylic rod to stripe their kids' asses. Perhaps I'll keep that option open for a later date.

I turn and face the girls with my arms crossed and a disapproving glare.

"I want the four of you to wait for me in the conference room. I need some time to calm down before doling out your punishments."

Truth is, I'm not that upset but they don't need to know that. They're good kids but if I let this slide, I know a couple of them will take advantage and escalate the next occurrence. Spending some time waiting and wondering will do them some good. I decide to watch tv and relax in one of the common rooms while I let the girls stew in the conference room. I become inspired as to how I'm going to punish them after watching an episode of the tv show Friends. I make a side trip to one of the rec rooms before returning to the conference room to administer their discipline. 

Lisa's pov

After what seems like an eternity, Shane finally returns. He has that stern no-nonsense aura about him that I'm sure he perfected during his military service.

"SIT!" he barks at us. "I'm most disappointed in you ladies." He gives us the disapproving paternal glare. "Well, what do you have to say for yourselves?"

"Ugghh!" I sigh a little too loudly and roll my eyes. Can't he skip the boring lecture and just get this over with already?

"You have something to say, Lisa?" Shane asks menacingly, clearly daring me to defend our actions last night.

"Nah, not really." Judging by how much darker Shane's eyes just became, I would like to modify my answer.

Shane slowly approaches, stopping right in front of the chair I'm seated in. He towers over me, making me feel like a tiny timid toddler in this position. I gulp and push myself as far back in my seat as humanly possible. Shane leans in close, literally only a few inches from my face.