His Favourite Cane - K.J. Vane
John Mercer was never caned by Mr Gairns.
He was simply one of the boys who lived in fear of him.
Twenty years later, John has decided to find out what made the retired teacher so determined to punish certain boys more than others.
Gairns is now an old man living alone in a quiet village. His wife is dead, his teaching career is long behind him, and the world in which he wielded his cane has disappeared.
John arrives at his house under a false pretext, presenting himself as someone interested in the history of school discipline.
Gairns is delighted to talk.
He remembers the boys. He remembers the punishments. He remembers the canes.
And as he talks, John begins to notice details that have nothing to do with discipline.
A gesture.
A look.
The unusual care with which Gairns remembers certain incidents.
The old man's enthusiasm for an instrument he has kept for decades.
Gradually, John understands something about the past that he had never suspected.
Something more disturbing than simple cruelty.
Something Gairns himself has never acknowledged.
John came looking for an answer to an old question.
What he finds instead is a truth that leaves him with no desire for revenge.
Only disgust.
His Favourite Cane is a dark psychological story about power, memory, shame and the secrets people can spend a lifetime refusing to see.
His Favourite Cane can be read as a standalone story. Readers who have read The Long Game will recognise John Mercer and gain additional insight into his character, but no prior knowledge is necessary to follow this story.
