Student House Blues
“Right –
another year begins now!”
Tammy looked
at her three housemates as they heard the police sirens outside. “What on earth is going on out there,” she
said as she looked out of the windows, and then turned and smiled again. “As I said, another term begins now, or on
Monday – so who’s up for going out tonight?”
“Sounds
good,” the other three said in unison.
“Good,” the Asian girl said in response, “so we’ll all get to our rooms
and unpack, and then go to the union bar.”
She was wearing a white cable knit long jumper, a pair of Nordic
leggings and black riding boots with brown tops. She watched as her flatmates left the front
room, and then sighed as she sat down.
The sound of
the doorbell took her by surprise, as she said “I wonder who that could
be?” Standing up again, she went into
the hallway, music coming from three separate music systems upstairs, and then
opened the front door.
“Yes,” she
said as she looked out, “how can I...”
“Good evening
– is this the home of Tammy Xiu?”
“I’m Tammy
Xiu – may I ask who you are?” The woman
who had rung the doorbell was about the same height as Tammy, with reddish
brown hair, and was wearing a black jacket and knee length skirt, white blouse,
dark hose and black heels.
“You are
Tammy? Excellent.” The woman smiled as she opened the slim case
she was carrying, and then produced a handgun.
“Please, step back and allow my colleagues and me to come in, without
any warnings to your flatmates.”
Tammy slowly
walked backwards, her eyes fixed on the guns as three more women walked
in. One had copper red hair, another
shoulder length ash blonde hair, and the dark sinned third woman short red hair
– but all three were dressed in the same way as the armed woman.
“Into the
front room please,” she said with a smile, Tammy backing in as the blonde
placed a holdall on the couch after they had come in. “Now, I want you to turn round, and cross
your wrists behind your back.”
“Who are
you?”
“For now, we
are your guests – now, turn round, and put your hands behind your back.”
Tammy slowly
complied, controlling her fear as she felt rope being wound round her arms,
forcing her wrists together as it was pulled tightly. She bit her lower lip, before the woman said
“Lily, Charlotte, Tracy – invite her three flatmates to join us or make sure
they stay where they are.”
“I don’t
understand – what is it you want?”
“All in good
time my dear Tammy,” the woman said as she took more rope from the bag, “all in
good time...”
Sophia was
sitting on a bench in her room, smiling as she looked through a book of art
prints. The second year Fine Art student
had a white scarf round her head, her long brown hair falling to her shoulders,
and a large blue infinity scarf around her neck, over the front of her brown
v-necked jumper. Like Tammy, she was
wearing a pair of Nordic leggings, hers black with a white snow flake pattern,
purple socks and taupe knee length leather boots.
As she heard
the door to her room open and close, she said “I’ll be ready in time, don’t
worry,” without looking up. When she
heard a strange voice saying “I’m not worried,” she looked round to see a
smartly dressed woman, with short copper red hair, smiling as she held a bag.
“Do I know
you?”
“No, but I
know you – Sophia Grey, daughter of Sir Jonathan and Lady Barbara Grey, the
jewellery designers. It is a real
pleasure to meet you – and now, I must ask you to do something for me.”
“And that
is?”
As she
produced a handgun and pointed it at Sophia, the woman said “lean forward, and
put your hands behind your back.”
“Oh my god,”
she whispered as she put her book down, “is this a kidnapping?”
“Do you wish
it to be?” The redhead smiled as Sophia
shook her head, and then said “good – lean forward, and put your hands behind
your back.” As the young girl did so,
she opened her bag and took out a length of rope, walking over and using to
secure Sophia’s wrists tightly together.
“I am going
to offer you a choice,” she said as she tied the ropes off, Sophia noticing the
slight South African accent, “I can make sure you stay in this room, or I can
take you to where my colleague is talking to Tammy, your flatmate, and you can
stay there.”
Sophia
thought for a moment, aware of the fact the armed woman was now using more rope
to bind her arms to her sides, the bands sitting above and below her chest,
before she said “I don’t want to be alone like this – so take me to be with
her.”
“Excellent –
I need to be there myself anyway,” the woman said as she took the rope under
one of Sophia’s arms, up and around the back of her neck, and then under the
other arm, the bans tightening even more as she did so. “Before we go down, however, there is
something I need to do first.”
“And that
essskesllyqshn” Sophia mumbled as the woman lifted her infinity scarf, pulled
it between her teeth, and then held the sides together tightly at the back of
her neck as she used some string to secure it in place. She then opened her eyes wide as she heard
the ripping of the roll of tape...
Barbara sat
on the edge of her bed, the legs of her faded jeans tucked into long white
socks, and then pulled the black leather boots up so that they covered her
socks and the jeans up to her knees. She
had already put on a brown cardigan over a diamond patterned v-necked jumper,
and as she stood up and looked at herself in the mirror she said “Damn, I look
good in this.”
“I agree –
you do look good.”
Barbara
turned round to see the smartly dressed Ash blonde woman in the doorway, the
gun in her hand pointing towards her as she said “you are Barbara Barnes?”
“Yeah – oh
lord, I’m not been kidnapped again am I?”
Her mind flew back to ten years before, when a gang had kidnapped her
and her mother to force her bank manager father to open the safe...
“No – this is
a robbery,” she said quietly, “but I do need to make sure you cannot raise the
alarm. I offer the choice – in here, or
with the others.”
Barbara
thought for a moment, before she said “I don’t want to be seen like that – what
will you do to me?”
“Lie down on
the bed,” she said as she looked over, “no reason why you should not be
uncomfortable. Lie down and then put
your hands on your head.” As Barbara
walked over, the woman put a small bag down, opened it and took out several
length of rope.
“Please don’t
hurt me...”
“Hush,” the
blonde whispered as she put Barbara’s hands together in pray, and started to
bind her wrists together, “I’ll make sure you stay on the bed, keep you quiet,
and then rob you. Friends of mine are
talking to your housemates, so be assured they will all soon be in the same
position.”
“Well, I
guess that is true,” Barbara said as the intruder took the rope around and
between her arms, securing her wrists together, and then lifted her hands above
her head, tying the ends round the metal head of the bed. “What’s your name?”
“Lily.”
“Do you do
this for a living, Lily?”
“Amongst
other things,” she said with a smile as she crossed and bound Barbara’s ankles
together, the rope going around and between her leather boots, and then
securing them to the foot of the bed, before she tied her legs together below
her knees. “Now then – your valuables?”
“In the
drawers over there,” Barbara said as she tried to move round. She watched as the blonde searched through,
emptying her jewels into the bag, before she took out a pair of panties, and
retrieved from the bag a wide roll of white tape.
“Time to be
quiet,” she said as she folded the panties into a small pad, “open wide.”
“I guess I
should thank you,” Barbara said sarcastically as she tugged on the ropes.
“Thanks
accepted – now, open wide.”
Barbara felt
the silk on her tongue, the taste of the laundry liquid faint as she closed her
lips over it and then the tape tugging on her skin as it was smoothed firmly
over her mouth. “Lie still,” she said
quietly, Barbara nodding as Lily picked up her bag, and walked quietly out of
the room.
Roxie
fastened up her white blouse, and then looked in the mirror as she fixed a pair
of earrings into place. Her light blonde
hair then fell over her ears, the young woman smiling as she checked her
outfit. The blouse was tucked into a
fawn coloured skirt with a wide brown belt, the split at the side of the skirt
showing her blue tights, and brown knee length boots.
“Right – fun
time,” she said as she turned round – and saw the red haired, dark skinned
woman standing in the doorway, holding several lengths of rope in one hand and
a gun in the other.
“Oh.... Oh my...”
“Now then,
Roxie,” the woman said as she closed the door, “are you going to do as I tell
you, or do I have to do something rough?”
She looked at
Roxie, and then was taken by surprise as the blonde said “promise?”
“I see – so
you like the idea of being bound and gagged?”
“Oh yes,” she
said with a smile, “I do like the idea, and I have to admit it beats going
out. What about my housemates?”
“My friends
are talking to them,” the woman said, “my name is Tracy. So, I want you to turn round, and put your
hands behind your back.”
Roxie grinned
as she did that, looking over her shoulder as Tracy put the lengths of rope on
the bed, and then used one to bind her elbows together behind her back, forcing
her chest out.
“Oh that is
tight,” Roxie sighed, “where did you learn that?”
“My employer
teaches a variety of techniques,” Tracy said as she took the rope between
Roxie’s arms, and then used a second length to bind her wrists together, “I
trust this is good for you?”
“Oh yes,”
Roxie whispered, “who do you work for?”
“Madame X – I
take it you would prefer to enjoy this in your room?”
Roxie nodded,
biting her lower lip as she tried to move her wrists, and then felt the new
ropes as they were wrapped round her arms and body, pinning them against her
back as they framed her chest. She could
see the way it was forced out and up, the buttons on her blouse straining to
keep closed.
“Do you get
enjoyment out of doing this as well,” she said as she was turned round, and sat
on her bed.
“For me, it
is a matter of professional skill,” Tracy said as she knelt down, crossed
Roxie’s ankles and began to bind them together, Roxie giggling as the rope went
around and between her legs. Her skirt
fell open, as Tracy then tied her legs together, the band sitting on top of her
boots and under her knees.
“Tell me,”
she said as she wriggled her legs round, “do you kidnap people as well?”
“I do,” Tracy
said, “why?”
“When you do,
do you – distract them?”
“Depends on
whether or not they are a paying guest or a ransom case.”
“People pay
to be kidnapped?”
“You would be
amazed,” Tracy said, “why – interested?”
“Oh yes – but
for now, will you do something for me?”
“And that
is?”
“In exchange
for forgetting your name – use an extra rope to distract me?”
Tracy watched
as Roxie moved on the bed, her ankles pulled back and secured to the extra rope
between her legs, her cheeks puffed out by the scarf that was pushed into her
mouth before white tape was used to cover her lips. The blonde looked up and grunted “fnkksss” as
Tracy closed the door.
“Hey – she
wanted to stay in her room as well?”
“You have no
idea Lily – I think we may have another paying guest soon.”
Lily shook
her head as she clapped Tracy on the back.
“Come on – I’m sure Penny and
Charlotte are downstairs.” They
walked down the stairs and into the front room, watching as Charlotte pulled Sophia’s
ankles back and secured them to her chest ropes. A silver band was wrapped round her head, as
she turned and looked at Tammy.
The young
Asian girl was sitting in one of the dining chairs, her chest lashed to the
back of the chair by rope that wound round and between her and the back, her
wrists trapped between them. Her ankles
were also securely tied together, and pulled back under the chair seat with a
length of rope linking them to the chair itself. Finally, her legs were also bound together
below her knees.
“What
happened,” the first woman said as she looked over.
“Barbara
wanted to be alone,” Lily said.
“and Roxie?”
“I’ll tell
you all later,” Tracy said as Charlotte removed a laptop from the bag, and switched
it on.
“I hope you
don’t mind me piggy backing on your server,” she said as she looked at Tammy.
“As if I had
a choice?”
“True – we
are ready at this end Madame.”
“Good.”
Tammy looked
at the screen as she heard the deep, tuneful female voice, and saw the silhouetted
head and shoulders on the screen.
“I apologise
for the interruption to the plans you young ladies may have had,” the woman
continued, her voice strangely warming and soothing, “but I am sure you will
understand why this was necessary very soon now. No problems, Penelope?”
“No problems,
Madame. All secured, and we await the
call.”
The sound of
the house telephone ringing made them all look, as Penny looked at Tammy. “Fetch the handset,” she said, Lily going out
as she said “What did I say?”
“If it is my father,
to tell him the message. Anyone else,
tell them I will call back?”
“Good,” Penny
said as she took the handset from Lily, and then placed it next to Tammy’s head
as she pressed the Answer button.
“Hello?”
She looked at
Penny, before she said “Father, I have been told to tell you that the other
girls and I are safe, but we have been taken hostage. We will not be harmed, and will be left as we
are, provided you do exactly what the woman with you says.
“I am well,
but I cannot move, and at least one of the girls is in the same room as me,
unable to move or speak. We have not been physically hurt, but they have made
their intent clear.”
She looked at
Penny as she said “he wants to speak to you.”
Taking the
handset, Penny said “Good evening ambassador.
I presume my colleague has made the situation clear?
“Good – you
have my assurance, and that of Madame, they will be unharmed so long as you do
as we ask. It will cost you nothing, but
it will bring relief to many people.
“Madame
thanks you in advance, Ambassador,” Penny said as she ended the call. Smiling, she said “thank you for your
cooperation. Now, open your mouth.”
Tammy felt
the cloth as it was pushed behind her teeth, and then closed her lips over it,
before Lily wound the white tape tightly round her head, sealing her mouth and
keeping the cloth inside.
Sophia and
Tammy watched the four women as they clustered round the laptop, watching
something intently for some time, before the voice like hot chocolate said
“thank you ladies – you may leave now.”
“Madame, a
question,” Lily said.
“Yes Lillian.”
“There
appears to be a lot of police activity in this area. Are you aware if other groups are in the
area?”
“There is certainly
increased activity, but we should take that as an opportunity, not a threat –
in this case, to leave discretely. I
will see you at headquarters.”
“Of course
Madame,” Penny said as she looked at the other three. “Shall we?”
As they left,
they heard a muffled scream from an upstairs room.
“Young Roxie
has pleased herself,” Tracy said with a smile as they left the house.
“All of
them?”
“So it would
appear,” Madame X said as they sat round the boardroom table. “We were not the only ones active over the
weekend – for some reason, that town was the equivalent of Harrods at the start
of the Boxing Day sales.”
“Well, we got
into the country what we needed for the Sisters, and a nice tribute as well,”
Charlotte said with a smile. “So, what
is next on the agenda Madame?”