In Their Own Words – Like Mummy

For this edition of In Their Own Words, we hear tales of how some young girls found themselves alongside their mothers at times when they had to be held together. Our first tale takes us back to the early sixties, and Beth remembers one night with her and her mother…

I was about six years old, and my father was away on a business trip, so me and my mother were alone in our house. It would have been about eleven o’clock at night, and I was sleeping in my bed. I was wearing a sleeveless pale blue nightdress, which had a lace band round the sleeves and the top. It was very like the one I knew my mother wore, and I also had a little green bow in my light brown hair.

I woke up, and got out of bed to get a drink of water. So I walked to the kitchen, got a glass of water, and walked back – but I heard talking coming from my mother’s bedroom, so I opened the door and looked in.

Mother was lying on the bed, but there was a man in there as well – someone I did not recognise. He was dressed in black, and he was wrapping something round my mother’s wrists as he held her hands together. My mother’s nightdress, like I said, was like mine, except hers had short, puffed sleeves, and the lace went up the front from the band and round her neck, as well as round the sleeves.

Both of them looked at me, before the man smiled and said I should come and sit on the bed with my mother. She seemed to be worried about that, but I came over and sat on the bed as I saw that he was using a ball of white cord to make sure my mother could not move her hands apart.

As I drank my water, he laid her hands down and then took the ball of cord down, using it to secure her ankles together before he cut the end free with a knife he had. Mother looked at me, and I asked her what the man was doing. She told me he was making sure she stayed on the bed, and he agreed – before he said he was going to do the same thing to me.

Mother shook her head and said he did not need to – I saw her hair which was held back by a green ribbon move as she did that – but I said it was all right, I wanted to be like her. So the man took my glass and put it on the bedside table, and then told me to put my hands together as if I was praying in church. As I did so, he made a loop in the end of the ball of cord, and then put it over my hands before he pulled it tight and started to wrap the cord around and between my wrists.

He then helped me to lie on my back, my mother watching as he did the same to me as he did to her – taking the cord down and making sure my ankles were held together, before he cut the cord free and tied it off.

The man then said he had to make sure we could not tell anyone what was happening, so he found one of my father’s large handkerchiefs, folded it into a pad and then pushed it into my mother’s mouth. He did the same thing to me – it filled the space behind my teeth, and the edges suck out between my lips.

He smiled, and asked us to promise we would not try to push the cloths out. Mother looked at me and nodded, so I did the same – and we watched him as he looked for and found some nice things which he put in a bag.

I remember my eyes closing as mother pressed her lips on my forehead – and I fell asleep until the policeman woke me up the next morning…

Going forward a little in time, Laura and her mother had been out for a day in London – only to find themselves the reluctant hosts of an unexpected guest at home…

It was November, but both Mum and I liked to dress the same, and liked to look fashionable – so we were both wearing the same style of coat dress. They were made from a mixture of cotton and synthetic fibres, and were fastened with a row of buttons up the left side – a row matching that on the right side. They had short sleeves and a collar – mine was right at me neck, but Mum’s was open a bit. The skirt came down to our knees, and there was a blue trim at the edges and pockets.

We both also had on short white kid leather gloves – but while I had a white hairband in my hair, and was wearing white ankles socks and shoes in the same shade as my dress, Mum was wearing white mid-calf boots, and a peaked hat on her head with a strap under her chin.

Anyway – we had been to Regent’s Park for a walk, and came back to our flat – but when we walked in, I was caught from behind as a leather gloved hand was clamped over my mouth. I looked at Mum, who was looking behind me, and then she said not to hurt me, and she would do whatever he wanted.

I wondered who she meant, as I heard the man holding me to take two chairs from our dining table, and set them in the centre of the room side by side. Mum did that, and then she sat on one of them with her hands on her head just as the man told her to do, and then he told me to do the same on the other chair.

That was when I saw him – tall, broad shouldered, with a black mask over his eyes. He walked behind us, and then told me to lean forward and put my hands behind my back. As I did so, I felt him feed my arms between the slats in the back of the chair, and then I heard a ripping sound before he used some sort of tape to secure my wrists together.

I saw it was silver tape, as he passed it round my waist to hold me against the chair back, which he then sued to tape Mum’s wrists to the back of her chair, as well as round her waist. He then came round and knelt in front of me, taping my ankles together and my legs below my knees, and then removing Mum’s boots and taping her ankles to the chair leg.

All the time he was doing this, Mum was talking to me, telling me everything was going to eb all right, and that she wasn’t going to let him hurt me. I did say she was tied to the chair as well, and that made her laugh – before he covered her mouth with strips of silver tape.

He did the same thing to me, so that neither of us could talk. We looked round, seeing where he had searched the room, before he picked up a bag and left us alone in the room, the radio turned up so that even if we could not talk, we would not have been heard above the music.

It was hours later when Dad came home and found us, cut us free, and we could tell him what had happened…

Going forward a few more years, and moving to the spring, Katy tells us of a memorable morning with her cousin and their mothers…

We were going to visit Aunt Holly and my cousin Susan – Susan was eight then, while I was twelve. Mum and I were both wearing the same outfits – floral round necked blouses under a lime green sleeveless tunic with buttons up the front, matching flares, and white shoes.

When we got to their house, I could see a white sports car parked on the driveway, so Mum had to park on the road as we got out and walked up to the front door. Back then, front doors were always unlocked, so we both walked in – and that was when things went very differently.

We walked into the front room to see Aunt Holly standing and Susan sitting on the couch – but there were two women, wearing white jumpers and pants tucked into black boots, in the room as well. One of the was standing with Aunt Holly, while the other was doing something behind Susan’s back – and I could see she had her hands behind her back as well.

“Holly,” Mum said, “what’s going on?”

“It’s a robbery,” Aunt Holly said- and I realised what the woman was doing to Susan. I then looked at what they were both wearing – short dresses, with what looked like a burnt orange tunic over an orange and white checked blouse with big wing collars, and white shoes.

Susan looked at me, and said she was being brave – and I saw that there was a bag open on the couch with white ropes sticking out of it. The woman behind Sally took another length of rope out, and told me to come and sit next to her. I looked at Mum, who was scared, but she said “do what they say Katy.” So I walked over and sat next to Susan as the woman took my hands behind my back, and I felt her bind my wrists together.

The other woman then told Mum and Aunt Holly to sit back-to-back on the floor, and to link their arms. When they did this, the woman behind us told us not to move as she collected more ropes, and then knelt down to tie Mum’s wrists together in front of her.

“When did hey get here,” I whispered to Susan as we sat in the chair, watching the two women as they bound our mother’s wrists and ankles.

“About an hour ago,” Susan whispered back, “they surprised Mummy and said if she did anything, they would hurt me.”

“Well, I’m here to protect you now,” I whispered, and Susan smiled as we watched them bind the legs of our mothers together below their knees. One of them then got a longer length of rope and wound it round both of them, while the one who had tied our wrists came back, got more rope, and then used them to make sure our ankles were held together as well.

“Just stay still and stay quiet, and you’ll be fine,” she said as she bound my legs together below my knees, “and you have something to tell your friends at school.”

We both nodded as she made sure Susan’s legs were held together like mine, and then used long ropes to make sure our arms stayed by our sides. As she did this, her friend tore strips of brown sticking plaster from a roll and pressed them over our mother’s mouths to keep them quiet.

Something she did to both of us a well, the plaster tugging on the skin round my mouth as she sat and watched us while the other woman went to search the house. She came back with a pillowcase that rattled, before hey both left us to try and get free…

An afternoon at the golf club was enjoyable for Beth and her family – but their return home was different…

I was twelve, Cassie was ten – and we were dressed in the same outfits as Mom. Our dresses had a big, coloured stripes pattern, both vertical and horizontal, with pleated skirts and no sleeves. The skirts came down to our knees, with an olive-green thin belt and here buttons on each shoulder, and we had matching purses as well.

We were also all wearing white shoe s- but Cassie and I had white socks on, while Mom did not. We also all had short white gloves on – and while Cassie and I had out hair long down our backs, Mom had hers curled at her neck.

We had been at a family day at the golf club, and Dad had to stay back – he was the Club Captain that year – so Mom drove us back in our car and we walked in. That was when we saw the three men who had broken in – they were all wearing boiler suits, heavy boots, black gloves and masks covering their heads, so that we could only see their mouths and eyes.

One of them had a gun that looked strange, which he pointed at us and told us to do what he said – and what he told us to do was to stand in a line. He then looked at me, and told me to stand behind Cassie. Mom told me to do what he said, and then one of the other men rolled up a white scarf and tied a knot in the middle. He handed it to me, and then told me to use it to Gag My Sister!

I didn’t want to, and Cassie was shaking, but he insisted, so I told her to open her mouth as wide as she could, before easing the knot between her teeth and hen tying the band round her head so that it stayed there. The man checked the knot, and then handed me a set of handcuffs, and told me to fasten them round Cassie’s wrists behind her back. I was shaking now as I did this, before he took Cassie by the arm and made her sit on the couch.

The armed man then told Mom to stand behind me, before the other man rolled a second scarf up and tied a knot in the middle. I knew then we were all going to eb the same, so I opened my mouth and let Mom push the knot into my mouth, before feeling the pressure on my cheeks as she tied the band round my head. The cold metal on my wrists was next, before I was made to sit next to Cassie and the man gagged Mom in the same way as us.

The third man, while all this was going on, had taken our purses and searched them before he pulled the blinds down over the windows. As Mom sat next to us, she looked over and said “Bhbrhfff” through her scarf gag.

Not once had they told us what was going on, as the man with the gun sat down with the gun on his lap and watched us, the other two men taking turns to walk round the house. When the telephone rang, he waited as it rang three times and then stopped, before he stood up and waited. When it rang again, he picked up the handset and said “yes?

“He knows what will happen if he does not do what we say?

“Good – let me know when you are done,” he said before he put the handset down, one of the other men taking some ropes from a bag as he knelt down and secured our ankles together, the rope going round and between our legs. We were all really scared at that point, and Cassie was starting to cry – but I nudged her and when she looked at me, I shook my head and mumbled “dhntchr,” hoping she would understand.

Eventually, the men got up and left us – but not before they pulled the telephone wire out of the wall. We were left there in the room, the light making funny patterns in the dust as it came through the slats of the blinds, hoping someone would come and free us, and tell us what had happened…

Finally for this week, a Winter’s Tale with Donna, Diana and their mothers…

We were in the same class at school, and this happened when we were both ten. My mum had asked Donna and her Mum to come and have Sunday lunch with us after church – both our fathers were away for the weekend – and I was so glad they accepted.

That particular Sunday, Mum and I had on the same outfits – a white blouse with a very wide lace collar, and black velvet pinafore dresses. Actually, the top half of the dress was like two bands that went over our shoulders, and a skirt that came down over our knees. I had on white tights and black flat shoes, Mum dark tights and black kitten heels.

We met up with Donna and her mum at church – and I was surprised to see they were wearing the same clothes as well. No, not the same as us – they had on a red and black tartan pinafore dress, the top half like a waistcoat, and black roll neck sweaters. They also both had on black tights and flat shoes, Donna’s laced at the front.

Anyway – we survived the service, and then they followed us home in their car. We lived in a big house with a fence round it, and as we got to the front door I was getting excited – we had the Christmas Tree up, and I knew Donna would want to see it as well.

Well, the lights were on when we walked in – and that surprised my mum, because she was sure she had turned them off. As it turned out, she had – it was the two men who were robbing the house who had turned them on, and we walked right into them doing just that!

Donna and I both screamed, but then we saw the men look at us. They were both wearing black jackets, trousers and had something like a stocking puled down over their heads, and Mum asked them something very rude.

Their response? One of them produced a gun, and told our mothers to come with him into the lounge, while the other man looked at us and told us to stand very still, and very quiet. Donna and I held each other as our mother’s were forced out, and then the man closed the door and told us to stand very still – he was going to use some rope to tie us up, and then we could go to be with our mothers.

I was scared by that as well, but he started with me by taking some thin white rope out of a bag, doubling it over, and then using it to secure my wrists together behind my back. IT felt funny, even with the rope over the cuffs of my blouse, but I had to watch as he took Donna’s hands behind her back and tied her wrists together as well.

He then took two longer lengths of rope out, doubled one over, and used it to force my arms against my sides. I could see the dark velvet of my dress lightening under the bands as he pulled them tighter and tighter, so that I could hardly move.

I watched Donna as he did the same to her, seeing her watch the ropes going round, and I asked her how she could stay calm.

“I play tie-up games with Mum at home – this is quite good,” she said quietly and then she looked directly at me. “Are you scared?”

“A little?”

“Well, just treat it as a game, and you’ll be fine,” she said as he tied the ropes off behind her.

“Smart kid – put your lips together.”

I watched as he peeled a length of white tape from a roll, and then pressed it down over Donna’s mouth. She looked at me, and I saw the smile under the tape before my mouth was covered in the same way.

He then made us sit down before he started to look in the cupboards in the main room, Donna nudging me and nodding before we started to try and move – with no success.

A little while later, the other man came in and we were made to walk into the lounge. Our mothers were sat on the two long recliners, rope round their upper bodies and their ankles, and he white tape over their mouths. I was helped to lie down with my head on my mum’s lap before my ankles were tied together, and then my legs above my knees over the skirt of my dress. Donna had the same thing done to her, so that we were at least comfortable before the two men left us in there.

Mum tried to get free – but then Donna’s mum said “Dhntbhfhr, thstthth.”

“Swhdhwhdh?”

“Wht…”

And so we did, until my dad came home…

That’s all from In Their Own Words for this week – until next time…

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