The rain had stopped sometime after midnight, leaving the campus wrapped in a thick, humid silence. Inside Arjun’s room the air was heavier still. The mattresses covered the floor completely. Eighteen lengths of rope lay ready. The leather belt and wooden paddle hung side by side. Three bottles of coconut oil stood open. Four candles burned low at the corners of the platform, their light steady and dim.

Eighteen soft knocks came at the exact minute he had ordered.