There was no one else in line when Jessie Aguilar strode up to the counter at 6:45 in the morning.
“Can I help you?” asked the young woman with chocolate brown skin, looking aside from her computer screen.
“Yes… I’m…”
“You here to check in?”
“Yes.”
“Alright,” the woman turned back to the screen and clicked a few times. “Last name?”
“Aguilar…”
“Ok… Jessica?”
“Yes.”
“Here to be crucified?”
Jessie nodded. The receptionist’s brow went up and her eyes widened for a moment, in acknowledgement of the severity of Jessie’s sentence.
“Can I see your I.D.?” Jessie brought her purse in front of her and fished out her wallet, then fumbled through it to find her driver’s license, hands shaking. The receptionist squinted at it briefly, looked Jessie full in the eye, and went back to her computer. “Thank you,” she said, typing.
“Ok…” the receptionist said, transitioning from her computer to a stack of manila folders on her desk beside her. “I got several things for you to sign before we get started.” Jessie nodded as the woman opened a folder labeled “Aguilar,” took out the first document, and slid it in front of Jessie. “So since you are being put to death, all of your handlers, torturers, and executioners will be men,” she said, with the rapid clip of a flight attendant reciting well-worn phrases. “As a woman, you would normally be punished by female officers, but since you’ve been condemned to death you must waive this right.”
Jessie signed, the receptionist took the document and replaced it with another.
“Thank you – now this is the waiver of your right to a quick and painless death… Says you understand that your death will be slow and you will suffer.”
Jessie looked over the document:
“I, Jessica Aguilar, hereby waive my constitutional right to a quick and painless death. I acknowledge and accept: That my death will not be, and of a right ought not to be, either quick or painless; That instead my death will be, and of a right ought to be, prolonged and painful; That I will be, and of a right ought to be, tortured and made to suffer in various manners before I am nailed to my cross; That after I am nailed to the cross I will hang, and of a right ought to hang, for multiple days on the cross before I die; That during this time I will be, and of a right ought to be, in extreme and constant pain, without relief. All of the above I acknowledge and accept as appropriate, just, good, right, and proper as punishment for my crime.”
Jessie looked up at the woman. How could she sign this? The woman’s brow was raised, not in impatience, but in invitation of a question.
“Do I have to sign this?” Jessie asked, voice quivering. She knew not to push very hard – her family’s lives were at stake.
“Yeah, it’s the standard one that we have to get signed for crucifixions, so…” the receptionist answered helpfully.
Jessie signed.
“Ok, and this one is the waiver of your right to death in private with dignity… Says you understand you will be executed in a public place in a manner intended to cause you humiliation…”
Again, Jessie read:
“I, Jessica Aguilar, hereby waive my constitutional right to be put to death in private and with dignity. I acknowledge and accept: That my death will not be, and of a right ought not to be, private, nor will be accorded any dignity of any kind, nor of a right ought I to be; That I will be, and of a right ought to be put to death in as public a place as is possible; That no opportunity shall be, nor of a right ought to be passed up to humiliate me, degrade me, and cause me shame; That no amount of humiliation, whether arising from insults, nakedness, intimate physical contact, or any other source, shall be deemed excessive. All of the above I acknowledge and accept as appropriate, just, good, right, and proper as punishment for my crime.”
Jessie siged.
“Thank you… Now this one is your transfer of sexual rights. Says you give your handlers, torturers, and executioners the right to abuse you sexually…”
“I, Jessica Aguilar, hereby transfer ownership of my body to the State, and to all agents authorized or employed by the State. Specifically, I renounce all right to legal recourse in any case wherein I feel I have been sexually harassed or abused in any way. Furthermore, I acknowledge and accept that in the course of my execution, I will be, and of a right ought to be, sexually harassed, sexually assaulted, and otherwise sexually abused. Any verbal abuse, penetration, or sexual contact of any kind I acknowledge and accept as appropriate, just, good, right, and proper as punishment for my crime.”
A tear fell on the document as Jessie signed.
“Ok, and it’s got two addendums. This is the first one – says you understand you will be penetrated anally…”
“What?” Jessie wiped her eyes to be able to read the document before her:
“I, Jessica Aguilar, understand that by transferring ownership of my body to the State, I have transferred ownership of every part of my body, including my anus and rectum. I acknowledge and accept that the State therefore reserves the right to penetrate my body anally with any instrument it may choose. Furthermore, I acknowledge and accept said anal penetration as appropriate, just, good, right, and proper as punishment for my crime.”
“What is this for?” she asked the receptionist.
“Oh, it’s for, like when you watch a crucifixion and they get tired, and they’re not breathing real well anymore?”
“I don’t watch executions.”
“Oh – I guess I’m just interested cause of my job and all. But all they’re gonna do is they’ll just stick this wooden, like, stick thing up your butt and attach it to the cross to support you. Helps you breathe better so you live longer.”
Jessie signed.
“Thank you, Miss Aguilar. And the second addendum… Wait – are you gettin’ canine rape?” Jessie looked clueless. “You don’t know? Here, let me look, cause they had it in your folder, but I couldn’t remember if it was on your master list. They don’t always give that one…” She scanned her computer screen. “Oh yeah. Yup, you are,” she set the document in front of Jessie. “Ok, last one! This is for canine rape – says you understand you will be sexually assaulted by a large dog, and you agree not to struggle.”
Jessie looked down in disbelief. The judge had not mentioned this.
“I, Jessica Aguilar, acknowledge and accept that the State, as Owner of my body, has decided to submit my body to a male dog for sexual intercourse. I acknowledge and accept that the State has every right to do this. Furthermore, I acknowledge and accept that said sexual intercourse is appropriate, just, good, right, and proper as punishment for my crime. I therefore hereby swear that I shall offer my entire body, and most especially my buttocks, vulva, and vagina, to the aforementioned dog without protest or struggle of any kind.”
Jessie sighed, barely keeping herself from sobbing, then signed.
“Ok! That’s all the paperwork! You’re supposed to be down on the Plaza for your whipping at 7:30, so you got some time… Let’s see – what kind of underwear you got on?”
Jessie looked up bitterly. “Why?"
“Well you know you’re allowed to wear a garment over your nipples and a garment over your pussy for the morning, right? But they gotta be approved.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well after your whipping you’re gonna spend the morning on parade, right? You’ll be handcuffed between two officers wearing sandwich boards to advertise your execution at 12:30. So during that time you can wear your bra and panties if they’re approved.”
“Approved by who?”
“Well, they just can’t cover up too much. Like your bra can’t cover your WHOLE breast, can’t cover your shoulders, minimal coverage of the back, stuff like that.”
“What if they’re not approved?”
“They’ll make you take them off. But I can check yours for you if you want, and you probably got time to change if you need to.” The woman’s manner was friendly and helpful, so Jessie agreed. “Yeah, just lift your tee-shirt up…” Jessie obeyed, showing her round, tan breasts set in a blue balconette bra. “Yeah, that will be fine, because a lot of your breasts are still showing.”
Jessie pulled her shirt back down, self-consciously. By now there were officers filtering through the waiting room and in and out of the halls.
“Want me to check your panties?”
“Like, just right here?” Jessie asked.
“Yeah, just pull your jeans down and let me take a look,” the woman said, stretching her neck to see over the counter. Jessie reluctantly unfastened her jeans and slid them halfway down her thighs to reveal her white panties. “Ok, turn around for me…? Yeah, they’re not gonna let you wear those, cause they cover your whole butt.”
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“Really??” the stress of anticipation had already taken Jessie’s nerves too far.
“Yeah, you can cover your pussy, but all other coverage has to be minimal. You got something that doesn’t cover your whole butt like that? It doesn’t have to be like a thong or anything, it’s just gotta show some.” Jessie just stood weeping. “It’s ok, Girl – you got time to run home and change, I bet.” She was honestly trying to help.
“It hardly matters,” Jessie wept. “I can only wear them till 12:30, right?”
“That’s correct – yeah, at 12:30 when you’re actually nailed to the cross you will have to undress completely and be crucified, uh, in the nude, yes.” The business tone was back. After a few moments of watching Jessie cry, the receptionist came back to her friendly tone: “You know what – go on home and pick out some sexy blue bikini bottoms to match your bra, ok? It’ll make you feel better. When you come back we’ll be ready to get you down the Plaza and get started.”