Repeat Appointments
The first time
Nadia pulled
the long sleeveless cardigan on over her brown gown and smiled as she looked in
the mirror. It was her first day home
from college, and she was looking forward to meeting her friends at the centre
again. A brown leather belt was fastened
around her waist, and her legs were in a comfortable pair of black tights – her
feet and lower legs also in a pair of fur lined brown leather boots.
Finally, as
befitted her faith, she picked up a large brown scarf and wrapped it round her
head, covering her hair and leaving only her face exposed as it hung down her
left side. Smiling, she put some gold
necklaces round her neck, and looked at herself in the mirror.
“This, I think,
needs a photo for the album,” she said to herself as she picked up a pink
camera, and posed in the mirror, nodding as she took the picture – and then
taken completely by surprise by the hand that was clamped firmly over her mouth
as she was pulled away.
“Don’t say a
word,” the man said, “my friend is downstairs with your mother, making sure she
cannot raise the alarm and I am going to do the same to you. Nod if you understand.”
“Enndrstnd,” Nadia
said as she nodded.
“Good – now,
when I remove my hand, put your hands behind your back and stand still.”
As the hand
went, the young woman did as she had been commanded, the camera removed from
her hand before she felt something being pulled around her wrists, and she
heard a rasping sound as they were forced together. “Why are you doing this,” she whispered as
her arms were gripped by strong hands, and she was made to walk over to her bed,
and then lie face down on it.
“We just want
your valuables, and have no desire to hurt you,” the voice said, “but you need
to be secured and silenced so that you cannot raise the alarm before we have a
chance to get away.” Nadia looked over
her shoulder, but only saw a wide shouldered man in a jacket as he held her
ankles together, and used what looked like a strip of plastic to force them
together, accompanied by the same rasping sound.
As she was
rolled over, she grunted when the strip of sticking plaster was pressed over
her mouth, before the man started to search through her drawers, shaking his
head before he looked at her and went off.
Nadia stayed
still until the noise died down in the house, and then sat herself up, slowly
moving across the bed before she slipped onto the floor, and started to push
herself towards the door. It was a slow,
laborious process, and she felt the sweat on her hair and the back of her neck
as she moved across the hallway, down the stairs, and then jumped into the
front room, where her mother lay on the couch, secured and silenced in the same
way as her.
She then jumped
to the telephone, wondering why she was not only afraid, but also somewhat
excited by what had happened. She
lifted the receiver, dialled 999, and then grunted into the mouthpiece as the
call was connected…
“Are you sure
you are all right,” her father said as they sat round the table later that
day. As Nadia and her mother nodded, the
young woman closed her eyes, and wondered what she would do if that was to
happen again…
The second time
Six months has
passed, and as Nadia sat in her room, reading the confirmation of her
University offer, her thoughts were actually on the new life she was going to
start in the autumn.
Right at that
moment, however, she was getting ready to go and meet her friends. For once, she was not wearing the full hijab,
instead wrapping her hair in a striped scarf to make a turban. She wore a back cardigan over a red zipped
top, a black snood hanging loosely round her neck, a knee length black skirt,
dark tights and knee length cuffed black felt boots.
“I had better
just take a picture for my blog,” she said to herself as she stood in front of
the mirror, and snapped a photo with her camera, before she collected her purse
and headed down the stairs. She was alone
in the house at that point, wondering if there was a bus due – only to stop
when she saw the young man in her front room.
“YOU!”
“Oh dear – I
had hoped this would not happen,” he said with a smile, “but it appears we meet
again – and it appears I must make sure you cannot raise the alarm again. Please,” he continued as he showed her a gun,
“take a seat from the table and place it in the centre of the floor.”
“Why have you
come back,” Nadia said as she complied, “we have nothing for you to take.”
“I understand –
I was actually laying low until the police deal with an incident across the
road, and it would appear I came into the same house.” As he spoke, Nadia sat down, and he took a
length of wool that was sitting in a basket by the couch. Guiding her arms around the back of the
chair, her secured her wrists together with a square hitch, and then tied them
to the central support of the chair back.
“You broke into
Mina’s house?”
“I did – and
she came home, so I came over here,” he said as Nadia saw the police car on the
far side of the road. She didn’t even
notice as he put her ankle against the front leg of the chair, and lashed it
into place.
“May I say
something I did not get the Chace to say before,” he said as Nadia realised he
was tying her other ankle into place.
“And that is?”
“You are a very
beautiful young woman.”
Nadia blushed
as he said this, struggling slightly and finding no way to move her wrists or
ankles. “I bet you say that to all the
women you tie up,” she finally said.
“Nope – you’re
the first,” the man said as he lifted her snood up. “Open your mouth please.”
“Oh no you’re
not gonntsssthtru,” Nadia’s words were cut off as he pulled the woollen band
into her mouth, and then used the wool to tighten it at the base of her neck,
her lips closing over the soft material.
“I think I may
leave by the back door, but first,” he said as he took her mobile phone from
her purse. Nadia stared at him as he
looked through her contacts, and then started typing.
“Whrruddnnn?”
“Something for
another day,” he said with a smile, “and my apologies for the
inconvenience.” Replacing her phone, he
looked at her, and then kissed her on the forehead before he left the room. Nadia stared at the wall, wondering what had
just happened…
It was that
night, in her room that Nadia finally looked at her phone, and at the contacts
list – including the new one that had been added. She debated whether or not to call the police
and tell them, but instead, kept it to herself – nothing would ever come of it
anyway, and apart from tying her to the chair and stuffing a scarf in her
mouth, he had not hurt her…
The Third Time
“Coming,
Nadia?”
“I’ll meet you
there Kate,” Nadia said as she turned from her table, “I need to finish this
first.”
“Okay – don’t
forget,” the blonde said as she left Nadia in her room, smiling as she heard
the rest of her flatmates leave. She
typed a few more sentences on the screen, and then stood up, stretching as she
heard her phone ping to show a message had come in.
It was a single
word – “Hello” – but it as the number attached that made her look again.
“It can’t be,”
she said as she looked at her phone, and then at herself in the mirror. It had been six months again, and she had
forgotten that afternoon, but now?
Nadia shook
herself as she looked in her wardrobe mirror.
The patterned chiffon scarf was, as usual, wrapped around her head and
over her shoulders, hanging down to her waist over the grey cropped jumper and
the blouse underneath. The legs of her
tight grey pats were tucked into knee length black leather boots. One aspect of coming to university was she
could be a little more fashionable in the way she dressed – and still be
modest.
“It has to be a
joke,” she said to herself as she walked out – and then saw him standing there,
smiling as he said “I see you got my note.”
“What the… How did you… Why are you…”
“Keep calm
Nadia,” he said as he put his hands on her shoulders, “I’m not here to rob you
or hurt you, I’m here to ask you a question.
“Did you like
it when I tied you to the chair?”
It was an
honest, open and direct question – and Nadia surprised herself when she heard
her own voice saying “yes…”
“And would you
like to feel that helpless again?”
“Yes…”
Smiling, he
took from his pocket a length of cord, and said “That’s why I’m here – turn around,
and put your hands behind your back.”
“You’re going
to tie me up?” Nadia watched as he
nodded and smiled, and then turned, biting her lower lip as he secured her
wrists tightly together.
“I don’t understand
– why do I like this?”
“Better not to
try and understand, and instead to enjoy – shall we go back to your room?” He escorted her to the room, and said “sit
down” as he produced two more lengths of cord.
By all rights, she should have raised the alarm, but instead she watched
with interest as he crossed and secured her ankles together, and then her legs
below her knees. She tried to move, the
leather squeaking, before she looked at him and said “what now?”
“I steal this,”
he said as he pressed his lips gently to hers, and then looked at her. I told you you were a beautiful young woman,
and you look even more beautiful now.”
“But you are
holding me captivehmmmmmsns” she said as he kissed her again, and she returned
the gesture, his arms round her as they kissed for a few minutes.”
“Sorry if I
interrupted your plans,” he said with a smile.
“That’s fine –
are you going to gag me again?”
“I am,” he said
as from his other pocket he produced a roll of white tape, peeling and tearing
off a strip before he pressed it over her lips, smoothing it into place before
he kissed there as well. Nadia moaned
slightly, then nodded as he held her, and said “so, let me tell you something
about myself…”
“Nadia? You still here?”
“Oh – sorry,”
Nadia said as she came from her room, “I had a surprise visitor. This is Tom.
Tom, Kate.”
“Hmmm – he’s a
looker, and you are a dark horse, Nadia.
Coffee?”
“Please – for
both of us,” she said with a smile as she slipped her arm round Tom’s waist.
The Fourth Time
Nadia adjusted
the long camel coloured scarf so that the ends hung in front of and behind her
on the left side, before she picked up the camera and took a selfie in the
mirror. Her Laura Ashley style dress had
long sleeves, and a pleated skirt that came to just above her knees. Dark tights covered her legs, and she was
wearing a pair of brown lace-up ankle boots, her grey socks turned over the top
of them.
“All done?”
“All done,” she
said as she looked at Tom, and then put the camera down, crossing her wrists
behind her back and smiling as she felt him bind them together with the soft
rope. “Are you sure nobody is going to
say anything?”
“Not unless you
draw attention to us,” Tom said with a smile as he cinched the wrists bindings,
and then tied the rope off. He then took
a longer length of rope, Nadia controlling her excitement as he tied it round
her arms and body, framing her chest but taking care not to trap her hijab
underneath.
“There we go,”
he said as he tied that off, and then picked up the poncho, putting it over her
head and covering her bound upper body so that nobody could see the ropes. She turned herself round, and then nodded as
she opened her mouth, allowing tom to push a folded handkerchief past her teeth
and into the space there.
She closed her
mouth over it, getting used to the feeling as he tore from a wide roll of clear
tape a long length, and then carefully pressed it over her lips, smoothing it out
and making sure there were no creases or air bubbles underneath. She looked at herself in the mirror, amazed
at how natural it looked as Tom placed the strap of her handbag over her head,
letting it hang to the side and adjusting her hijab so it hung naturally as
well.
“Shall we,” he
said as he opened her room door, Kate nodding and smiling as they went outside,
Nadia excited and scared at the same time…