Moving Day
“There are so
many memories in this old place, you know?”
He nodded as he
walked along the upstairs corridor with his mother, and they stopped at the top
of the stairs, looking at the ornate ironwork of the banister and going to the
ceiling. She ran her hand over the metal, as he looked at her.
“Hey remember when you were Den Mother for a day?”
“How could I
forget “
“Please don’t
hurt me,” she said as she looked at the boys in front of her, all wearing
bandanas round their heads as masks that covered the lower half of their faces.
Her son pointed the toy gun at her, and said “not a word lady we want your
jewels, and we need to make sure you cannot stop us.”
It was a
Saturday morning, and she had agreed to look after his Scout Group for the
morning she had said they could play a game, and it would
appear that Cops and Robbers was the game of the day.”
“What do you
want me to do,” she said with a smile. She herself was wearing a long blur
short sleeved top, blue with white elbow length sleeves with thin red stripes, “Doc
O’Leary’s” written on the front in white letters. She was also wearing black
shorts and tights, her feet in black heels. She had also out her chestnut brown
hair up in a bun and it was when she brought in drinks and snacks they had
surprised her.
“Upstairs,
lady,” her son said as he waved the toy gun. She tried not to laugh as she
raised her hands and walked up the stairs, not seeing what the other boys had
picked up before they followed.
As they
reached the top of the stairs, he said “kneel down,” and she did so then was
taken by surprise as a white cloth was tied over her eyes.
“Hey!”
“We said you
cannot see what we are doing lady,” her son said, “now open your mouth.”
“How lhngnghruhhh “ She tasted the
white cotton on her tongue as cloth was pulled between her lips, and tied
tightly round her head. “Okay I have to trust them now,” she said as she was
helped to stand up and against the iron work, and her arms were taken round the
tall structure.
“Whhrhruhdhhn,” she mumbled, the cloth keeping her tongue
pressed down before she felt one of the boys crossing her wrists, and then the
rope as they were bound tightly together.
“Make sure
she can’t get away, boys!”
“Whththth .”
She felt ropes around her body now, at her ankles, her legs below her knees,
her waist and her stomach, as well as above her chest. She was being tightly
bound against the metal and she could barely wriggle by the time they had
finished.
“Right
search the house,” she heard her son say, as there was the sound of feet
running in all directions.
“Okay -this
is different,” she thought to herself as she tried to move, the ropes rubbing
on her as well as the metal. She could not get free she just had to pray the
boys would not take advantage of her
Eventually,
she heard fee running past and down the stairs, and then the noise as the boys
talked to her son they were praising him, and she felt some pride in that, but
also still wondered what he was going to do
“Police is
anyone here?”
“Hppshthrrsss,” she called out as she heard the footsteps,
and then the blindfold was removed as she looked at her son.
“You been
robbed?”
She slowly
nodded and mumbled “whttdhdhuhh?” she then saw the
Polaroid in his hand she had heard a picture being taken and held it up for her
to see, the bands of rope round her and framing her chest, her legs below her
knees, and her ankles, the cloth over her eyes and between her lips.
“Hmmmhhh chnuhfhrmh?”
“Sure and
thanks Mom,” he said as he started to untie her, seeing her smile as he did so
“Yeah, that was
a different day,” she said with a smile, “and at least I knew I could trust
you. Your friends, I was not sur e- but you I could trust.”
“Yeah,” he said
with a smile as they walked downstairs and into the front room, and she sat on
the brown settee.
“Remember the
day we were robbed?”
“Yeah that came
to mind today as well “
“See you in
a couple of hours,” she said as she waved her son off, and he went to the
waiting car. She was wearing a black jacket and knee length skirt, with dark
hose and black high heels. He hair was light brown,
the grey starting to show and she was going to see the bank manager later.
Closing the
door, she turned and then heard the ring, so she opened it and said “what did
you forget?”
“Nothing
slowly back up, hand sin the air.” The young man was wearing a smart suit, with
a shirt and tie, and black shoes as well as black gloves, and he was pointing a
gun at er with one hand, carrying a briefcase with the other.
“Oh my god,”
she whispered as she walked backwards, her hands in the air as he closed the
door.
“Good in the
front room, close the curtains, and sit on a seat.”
She nodded
as she slowly walked in, and went to the windows, looking out.
“Don’t you
will only get hurt.”
Nodding, she
pulled the curtains closed and then sat on the brown couch, her hands still in
the air as he put the briefcase down, opened it, and took out a length of white
rope.
“Put your
hands together in front of you, fingers interlocked.”
She knew she
had no choice as she complied, watching as he doubled the rope over and then
wound it round her wrists, forcing them together before he took the rope around
her wrists, and then tied the ends off.
“What do you
want,” she said as he took a longer length of rope from the bag and walked
behind her.
“For you out
be quiet,” he said as he passed the rope round her body, forcing her arms
against her sides as it went round in two band, then bringing the bands
together between her breasts and taking the rope round the back of her neck
before he tied the ends off.
She watched
him as he walked back round and took two more lengths
of rope from his briefcase, and then knelt down,
doubling one length over and using it to secure her ankles together, taking it
around and between her limbs.
He did the
same with her legs below her knees, before he stood up
and said “Valuables?”
“In the
bedroom “
“Good if you’re
lying I will not be happy,” he said as he took a large cream headscarf from the
bag, rolled it into a band and tied a knot in the middle, and then went behind
her. “Open your mouth.”
She nodded
as he pulled the knot between her teeth and then tied the band tightly round
her head, trapping her hair underneath, and then left hr there as he went to
search the house. She tried to move with no success and then watched him come
in, put a pillowcase into his briefcase, close it, and then leave.
She was
unable to move, call for help until her son came back in and said “Mom?”
“Oh yes, I
remember that day,” she said quietly as she rubbed her wrists, “and how you
helped me to get over it.”
“By tying you
up again and now my children do the same for you hey, remember that Mother’s
Day?”
“All right,
all right what’s going on?”
She was
wearing a red checked blouse, black pants and red heels, her long light hair
getting greyer now, as the red scarf over her eyes meant she had no idea where
she was. She could hear the giggling, as she was sat on a leather cushion and
then her left wrists was placed on an armrest, held in place as someone tied
her wrist down to the wood.
She felt the
same thing being done to her other wrists, while at the same time someone else
had put her ankles together, and was using more rope to secure them tightly.
She could feel the rope going around and between her limbs before it was tied
off, and then whoever it was doing the same thing to her legs above her knees.
“Do I get to
see who is doing this,” she laughed, and then she felt the rope below her chest
as she was pulled back against the chair back. “I hope that is your father
doing that, she said as the rope went above her chest as well, pulled tighter
still - and then the rope over one shoulder, as someone pulled it round the
upper band between her chest, then the lower band, and back up over her other
shoulder as she tried to move.
“All right,
you have me captive,” she said quietly, so what is going to happen next?” She
felt someone climb onto her lips, then kiss her on the cheek as she said “Happy
Mother’s Day, Grandma.”
The
blindfold was removed as she saw her granddaughter smiling at her, and then her
son with his son, as he said “Happy Mother’s Day let us serve you “
She looked
down at the red ropes holding her to the chair, and smiled as she said “well, a
drink would be nice “
“It became a
holiday tradition after that,” he said as she looked at him, “even after Dad
died.”
“It certainly
did last Christmas, you had me wearing a Father
Christmas jacket, red and white candy stripe leggings, white socks and red shoe
s- and then you tied me up, gagged me with the red scarf, and made me watch as
the family opened their presents and mine.”
He looked at
his mother, her grey hair cut short, and nodded as he said “Well, there was
last St Patrick’s day as well you in the green top, green and white tights,
gold heels, tied just as tightly in the white ropes and with the scarf tied as
a blindfold?”
She nodded as
she said “Good memories and now I need to move on. This house really is too big
for me now.”
“Are you sure
you have moved everything you wish to move to the new house?”
He nodded as
she sat on the couch, and said “yes the rest of the furniture is being
collected tomorrow for charity. But I wanted one last tour before we say
goodbye.”
“I can
understand that so this is how you want to leave?”
She nodded as
she sat there, wearing a short-sleeved top with a deep round neckline, a fern
pattern on the material, black pants and black heels. “I
am start with my legs.”
He smiled as he
opened the bag, and took out a length of white rope, doubling it over as she
turned and stretched her legs along the length of the couch. He passed the rope
under her legs and fed the ends through the centre loop, and then gently brough
her ankles together as she bent her legs, watching as he bound them tightly.
“That’s good,”
she said as he took another rope, and secured her legs together below her
knees, forming several bands and then tightening it by taking the rope between
her legs. Anther band held her legs together above her knees, before she
stretched her legs out and twisted hem slightly.
“Okay, cross
your wrists on your lap.”
She watched as he
doubled over another rope, and then then wrapped it round her wrists.
“I’m not
hurting you, am I?”
“No I know you
would not,” she said quietly as he secured her wrists together, and then took
the longest length of rope, wrapping it round her arms above her elbows and her
body as they were held firmly together.
As he tied the
rope off, he saw a tear and said “I understand tell me when you are ready.” She
sat there for a few minutes, and then nodded as she opened her mouth and he
pulled the rolled up white scarf between her lips, pulling gently back on the
corners of her mouth as he secured the ends at the back of her neck.
“I’ll be back
in a minute,” he said as he left the room. She looked round for one last time,
taking in the memories, before he came back in and lifted her up. She looked
round again as he took her through the kitchen, and into the garage, sitting
her on the back seat of the car before he close the door and went back in.
She watched as
he came back with her handbag, locked the door and put
the keys in his pocket, before he got behind the wheel.
“Ready?”
“Yhsss,” she mumbled as he slowly reversed out, the garage
doors closing as he went onto the road, and then drove off from his childhood
home for the last time