Jay and the
International Exchange
1 pm
“Did you enjoy
the rehearsal Elsa,” Helga asked as she looked round from the driver’s
seat. “I certainly did – and it gave us
both the chance to dress up.”
“Yeah, it did,”
the eleven-year-old said as she looked out of the window. “These clothes are very different from my
shorts and leggings.
“It was
acceptable in the eighties, when I was your age,” Helga said as she looked in
the rear-view mirror at her granddaughter.
“And it gives me a chance to relive something of my lost youth as well.”
“Got to say, it
makes you look good,” Elsa said with a smile.
Helga was wearing a large baggy sweater, yellow on the top and lime
green on the bottom, faded blue jeans and over the knee white leather boots
with a short heel. Her long grey-blonde
hair fell loosely over her shoulders.
Helga smiled as
she turned the corner and looked back at Elsa.
The young girl had her dark hair in a ponytail, held there by a flower
band, and was wearing a white dress with a mesh top and a knee length pleated
leather skirt. The skirt had a band of
studs at the waist and a little lower down, the round necked matching top also
with rows of studs. Finally, she was
also wearing a pair of over the knee white leather boots.
“So did you
hear from Mum and Dad?”
“I did – they
will call tomorrow afternoon,” Helga said as she approached the driveway to her
home. “In the meantime, Suki and Helen
are coming round this afternoon, so the girls will be here as well.”
“Good – I told them
what I had to wear today, and they promised they would come dressed in a
similar way,” Elsa said with a smile as Helga turned into the driveway that led
to her house. It was an old manor house,
which stood at the top of a small hill which she drove up the driveway to. Coming to the top of the hill, she parked to
the side of the front door of the house, smiling as she got out and the soles
of her boots crunching on the gravel.
Elsa jumped out
of the rear of the car and followed her grandmother to the front door, waiting
as she unlocked and opened it before she ran into the front room. Helga closed the door and smiled as she made
her way to the kitchen, intending to make some coffee – and then stopped as she
saw the door leading to the rear of the house was open.
“What the… hmghdddhruhh?”
The leather
gloved hand that was camped over her mouth took her by surprise as she heard a
man speaking – a man who said in a soft Geordie accent “Now then, I need you to
remain calm, Helga – you need to hear what I have to say….”
“Who are you?”
“Wehl, mah name
is Mrs McPhee,” one of the two women in the front room said as she looked at
the young girl, “ahn this is mah friend Ophelia.”
“Hello Elsa,”
the other woman said with an American accent, “come and sit between us.” Elsa looked at both of them – they were wearing
grey boiler suits, leather gloves and short boots, but they also both had
balaclavas on, covering their heads so that only their eyes and mouths were
visible.
“Are you – are
you robbing Gran?”
“In a way,” Mrs
McPhee said in her sift Scottish accent, “cum ahn sit doon, ah’ll
explain.” Something in the way she spoke
was calming Elsa, as she slowly walked over and sat between the two masked
women.
“Noo then –
we’re here wi a couple of freends,” Mrs McPhee said, “ahn yes, we are robbing
yer gran – but her business, no her.”
“What it does
mean, however,” Ophelia said with a smile, “is we need to make sure that you,
your grandmother, and anyone else who comes here today cannot raise the
alarm. It means we need you to do what
we tell you to do, but we promise you, we are going to do nothing to hurt you,
or your friends.”
“But you’re
robbers – does that mean you are going to tie me up and stop me talking?”
“Yes,” Ophelia
said quietly, “but let us show you it’s nothing to be scared of. Mrs McPhee?”
“Elsa, mah wee
dahling,” the other woman said as she took from a pocket a length of white
cord, “can ye put yer hands togefer in prayer?”
The young girl looked at her, and then nodded as she heled her hands
together, palm to palm, in front of herself.
Ophelia smiled as Mrs McPhee doubled over a length of white rope, and
then pulled it tight, keeping Elsa’s wrists together before she took the rope
around and between her arms. It only
took five minutes, but when the masked woman had finished Elsa was unable to
move her wrists apart.
“Duhs it hurt?”
“No,” Elsa
whispered as she moved her hands around, “it doesn’t hurt. Why doesn’t it hurt?”
“Because we
know what we are doing,” Ophelia said with a smile as she stroked the hair away
from Elsa’s face. “Now, I want you to
put your ankles together – Mrs McPhee will then make sure they stay together in
the same way as your wrists. Ready?”
Elsa nodded as
Mrs McPhee knelt on the floor, doubling over another length of the white rope
before she wrapped it round her booted ankles and pulled them together.
“So, what are
you going to do if the telephone rings, Helga?”
“I will say I
cannot talk at the moment, and then hang up,” Helga said as she looked at the
three men in the kitchen. All three were
identically dressed – grey boiler suits, gloves and boots, and balaclava masks only
showing their mouths and eyes.
“And if anyone
calls at the door, apart from those you are expecting?”
“I will say it
is a bad time and ask them to go.”
“Good,” the man
speaking said in his North of England accent.
“Internet?”
“Access disabled,”
one of the other two men said, “as are the alarm systems Jay.”
“Good,” Jay
Edwards said with a smile, before he turned to the second man. “Go to an upstairs room, keep an eye out,
inform me if others arrive.”
As he left the
kitchen, Jay passed Helga a mug of coffee.
“I promise you; my friends are taking good care of your granddaughter –
and all of you are going to have a great adventure today.
“So long as you
do as I say.”
“I should not
believe you,” Helga said quietly “but – I do.
Why is that?”
“Natural
charm?” Jay smiled as he looked at the
clock, and then said “so, when are…”
The sound of
his phone ringing made him fall silent, before he removed it and said “yes?
“Good.” Putting the phone away, he stood up and said
“you have a visitor. Invite them to come
in – and let them be surprised.”
Helga nodded as
she slowly walked to the front door as the bell rang, and then opened it. A young Japanese woman was standing there,
wearing a blue and white pinstripe shirt over a black vest, and dark blue jeans
with the legs tucked into a pair of soft white leather cowboy style boots.
“Suki,” Helga
said with a smile, “are the girls with you?”
“They are – Soo,
Jen, come on,” Suki said as she stood to thew side and allowed her daughters to
come over. The youngest was five years old
and was wearing a blue denim waistcoat over a long sleeved white top, and pink
jeans with the legs tucked into her own over the knee white leather boots. She also had a pink hat on her head.
Her other
daughter was a year older and was wearing a black jumper with tiger print
shorts, and over the knee black leather boots.
“Can we come in, Aunt Helga,” she said with a smile.
Helga nodded
and said “of course, Jen,” standing to one side as the two girls ran in – and
they both stopped as Suki came in to find a masked man closing the door.
“Mummy…”
“Don’t be
afraid, Soo,” the masked man said as both girls saw a masked woman come out of
the front room. “Why don’t you both go
with Mrs McPhee here?”
They both looked
at Suki, who nodded as they went with Mrs McPhee, and she heard Elsa say
“Heethrrr – chmhndjhnmh…”
“Helga,” Suki
said quietly, “what’s going on?” The
older woman swallowed before she said “Suki – this man is Jay Edwards.” She watched her assistant’s face as she
processed this information, and then whispered “oh God…”
“Remain calm,”
Jay said with a smile, “I promise you, do as we say, and this will be a great
adventure for all of you. For now, I
want you to hand your bag to my friend here, and then put your hands behind
your back.”
Suki nodded and
slowly handed her bag to the masked man, who took it and looked inside. Removing her mobile phone, he smiled as he placed
it in the pocket of his boiler suit and then put the bag to one side. She then slowly moved her hands behind her
bag as the man took from another pocket a length of white cord, and then
crossed her wrists behind her back before he began to secure them together.
“Helga, the
girls…”
“there’s two of
them in there – you saw one of them, and there’s another woman,” Helga said
quietly. “They’re probably ging to end
up like Elsa – bound, sitting on the couch and gagged. It sounds like they have a Disney film on, so
at least they will be distracted.”
“But they will
be terrified…”
Helga smiled
and shook her head. “I know this may
sound stupid – but they won’t be,” she said as she man finished securing her
assistant’s wrists, and then picked up a longer coil of rope which he wrapped
round Suki’s upper body, forcing her arms against her sides as he wound it
round her and framed her chest in two bands.
“Don’t you feel calm as well?”
Suki slowly
nodded as she felt her arms pressed against her. “so, what are you going to do with me?”
“Well, my
friend will take you to an upstairs room to remain there until supper is ready
– be assured, Mrs McPhee and Ophelia will look after the younger girls,” Jay
said with a smile, “as they will look after the daughters of your other
assistant.”
“Helen’s on her
way here as well?”
“She is,” Helga
said as the ropes round Suki were secured, “and she will end up like you, while
Claire and Rhona end up like the other two.”
“Please, come
with me,” the masked man said as he and Suki started to walk up the stairs,
while a second masked woman came from the front room.
“We have Soo
and Jen nice and happy with Elsa.”
“Good – shall
we await the next arrival in the kitchen, Helga…”
3.30 pm
“No – I cannot
answer that at the moment, I have visitors.
Send me a message and I’ll get back to you.
“No, thank
you,” Helga said as she put the phone down, and looked at Jay.
“Wonderfully
done,” the masked man said with a smile, “now…”
The knock on the door made them both look over, as he said “invite them
in.” Helga nodded and went to the door,
opening it as he heard a young female voice say “hi boss – got those files you
wanted, and the girls were wondering if they could see Elsa.”
“OF course – in
fact, they can go right into the front room,” Helga said as she opened the
door, and Mrs McPhee came out to see two more girls come in. One was about eight years old, and was
wearing a mustard coloured coat, light blue leggings and mid-calf grey leather
boots. The other girl was fourteen, and
was wearing a black jacket over a white t-shirt, and dark pants tucked into a
pair of tan leather boots that came almost to the tops of her legs.
They stared at
Mrs McPhee, who put a gloved finger to her lips and then indicated they should
come into the front room with her. As
they walked in, their mother came in.
Helen was wearing a short black jacket over a black t-shirt, and faded
denim jeans tucked into over the knee black suede boots.
Both the girls
heard their mother say “what the…” as they looked at Elsa, Soo and Jen. All three girls were sitting on the couch,
ropes around their wrists in front of them, their ankles and their legs below
their knees, and their wrists tied to the rope round their legs. They each also had a length of white tape pressed
down over their mouths, as they heard Elsa say “chhmhhnjhnhs.”
There was a
second masked woman standing behind them, who smiled and said “so this must be
Clare and Rhona. Which one of you is
Clare?”
“I am,” the
younger girl said as she looked at her friends, “What’s going on?”
“Well,” the
masked woman said, “my name is Ophelia, and my friend is Mrs McPhee. So first things first – please take your coat
off Clare, and I want Rhona to put her hands behind her back.”
“Are you
robbers,” Rhona said as Clare removed her coat to reveal a yellow smock top.
“Aye, that we
ahr,” she heard the woman called Mrs McPhee say as she felt rope forcing her
wrists together. Ophelia looked at Clare
and smiled as she said “why don’t you sit with the other, and then we can make
sure you are just like them.”
“Does it hurt,”
she said quietly as she sat down, her blonde hair up on her head in corn row
plaits.
“No, it doesn’t,” Ophelia said as she took
some soft rope and tied it round the young girl’s wrists, the other three
watching as her wrists were secured together.
She then looked at her older sister as Mrs McPhee wrapped rope round her
upper body, forcing her arms against her sides as it went round her.
“Why are you
doing something different to her?”
“Well – your
sister is a little older, so Mrs McPhee is going to make sure she really cannot
move. She will stay in here, however,
and watch the television with you for the moment.”
“Well – can we
watch something else?”
“Lskwht,” Jen
said as she looked over.
“A musical?”
“Bhttwhchnthshng…”
“Wha says ye
cannae sing,” Mrs McPhee said as she tied the ropes round Rhona off, and then
helped her to sit on the floor before she started to bind her ankles together.
“But we won’t
be able to talk?”
“Disnae mean ye
canne sing,” Mrs McPhee said with a smile as she pulled the rope tight between
Rhona’s legs, while Ophelia started to bind Clare’s ankles and legs together
with more ropes. “Let’s get ye ahl ready
furst, ahl richt?”
Clare nodded as
she watched the masked woman tie her legs together below her knees, and then
tie her wrists down to that band of rope.
Mrs McPhee did the same to Rhona, before she peeled a length of white
tape from the roll, and then pressed it firmly down over her mouth.
“Ready, Clare?”
The young girl
nodded as the tape was smoothed down over her mouth, and Ophelia then went to
the television. “How about something a
little different,” she said as she held up a Blu-ray box, the girls all nodding
as she put the disc in and it started to play.
“Now, so long
as ye dinnae struggle, ye can sign along.
Try,” Mrs McPhee said as the scene opened in darkness, a man posing as
all five started to sing.
“Lhddhshnjhnts,
thsshsthmhmhnnuhfwhthdfhr…”
Helen grunted
as the masked man pulled the rope tighter, securing her ankles to the ropes round
her chest as she looked at Suki. Both
women were lying on their sides, ropes holding their wrists together behind
their backs and their arms to their sides, their boots squeaking as they rubbed
together with the ropes round their ankles and below their knees, the white
tape covering their mouths.
“Hwllhhnn?”
“Shmthmmm –
thghrels?”
“Dhnshtrsss –
jhhdwhrds?”
“Yhsss –
lhrdhlhs…”
“So what
happened now,” Helga said as Jay stood up, having secured her to the kitchen
chair.
“Now, you relax
for a while, and then you order dinner for everyone – but for now, time to be
quiet.” He pressed the white tape firmly
down over her mouth, and then left her under guard as he walked into the
hallway as another masked man walked down.
“The Greatest
Showman?”
“I know,” Jay
said quietly, “but they sound as if they are having fun. How are the other women?”
“Secured – as
you said, now we wait…”
“Come
again,” Mark Williamson said as his wife Yvonne said the tray down on the
coffee table, and sat next to him as she faced their guests. One was a tall, sun-bronzed Australian, the
other a dark haired American woman dressed in pink.
“You know
Karl Muller?”
“Of course I
do,” Mark said as he picked up a mug, “he and his wife are on a secondment to
California, but they are due back in a few weeks. Their daughter – Elsa?”
“Elsa – just
turned eleven,” Yvonne said as she sat down.
“What about him Brian?”
“Well,” the
Australian man said as he put his cup down, “we have information that certain
foreign powers have a plan to coerce him into doing some business for him, by
taking his daughter hostage. When they
come back, the plan is apparently for them to take her hostage when she visits
her grandmother, Helga. My superiors
want that plan stopped – but it has to be done in a way that convinces them
that is not going to work.”
“And that is
where we come in?”
“Indeed – if
Jay and Mrs McPhee can stage a visit, ostensibly to relieve Helga Muller of
company funds, then it may alert them not to hit there. If our information is correct, their backup
is to try and take his wife hostage – but my superiors will be waiting.”
“What about
other visitors?”
“Chances are
her two main assistants will visit during our time there – Suki Loo and Helen
McCabe.” The woman handed over a
dossier, Yvonne looking through the papers inside.
“You two
with us?”
“Indeed –
Helga has a home office, so all transactions will be done from there – New
York, Tokyo and London Markets.”
“And then we
leave?”
“And then we
leave…”
7 pm
“Did you all
enjoy the meal?”
Helga smiled as
she looked round the table, the five girls nodding as they sat in their
chairs. Their waists were secured to the
chair back with ropes, and their legs were still bound, but they had all
enjoyed the pizzas and snacks that Helga had ‘arranged’ to be delivered.
Suki and Rhona
nodded as Jay looked at the clock on the wall.
“Now then,” he said with a smile, “this is what is going to happen. Helga, you and Elsa will now go upstairs with
Mrs McPhee and I, while my friends stay with everyone else. Would you please release Elsa, Ophelia?”
“Of course,”
the masked woman said as she knelt by Elsa’s side and released her legs and
waist, the young girl jumping up as she took her grandmother’s hand. “What are we going to do now, Grandma,” she
said as they walked up the stairs.
“Well,” Mrs
McPhee said, “ah want ye tae go into the bathroom, and get cleaned up. Then ye can put on the clothes in thair, and
come out.”
“In the
meantime,” Jay said as he took Helga by the arm, “we will conduct some business
in your home office. Shall we?”
“So we get the
comfort of you emptying some of my accounts from here?”
“Well, all
three of you will do something for us,” Jay said as they entered the office,
“and remember, my friend is with your granddaughter. So, take a seat, log into your system, and
then I will ask you to do something.”
Helga nodded as
she sat down and switched on her home computer, waiting for the login screen to
appear before she entered her company’s systems.
“Good,” Jay
said as he took a USB stick from his pocket.
“Plug this in, and then follow instructions.”
“What will this
do,” Helga said quietly.
“Plant a few
routines to undertake various transactions in a few hours’ time,” Jay said with
a smile, “by which time, we will be long gone from here. Ah – just double click on the icon.”
Helga slowly
nodded as she did as Jay had ordered her, and said “now what?”
“Now? Turn in the chair, and remove your
boots.” As Helga did so, Mrs McPhee
brought Else into the room – the young girl now wearing a red and white tartan
print nightdress with a Hello Kitty print on it, and red trim on the hem that
came down over her knees.
“Go with Mrs
McPhee,” Jay said as Helga stood up and went out of the room. As for you, Elsa, I need to make sure you
cannot move and speak – and you can show the others what it is like.”
“How will you
do that, Mr Edwards?”
“Well,” Jay
said as he opened a bag, and took out two halves of red sponge, “you can start
by gripping these and making two fists…”
“Oh my – are
you all right Elsa?”
“I think so,
Grandma,” Elsa said as Helga came back into the room. The young girl’s arms were now behind her
back, and there were two bands of rope holding her arms against her sides. She could also see the lengths of rope
between Elsa’s arms and body, making the bands tighter and stopping her moving.
As she turned
round, Helga also saw the white socks which had bene pulled up over her fists,
her wrists crossed and secured together behind her back.
“Sit doon,
lass,” Mrs McPhee said as Elsa sat in the chair, watching as Jay handed Helga
tow red sponge balls.
“Make two fists
holding these,” Jay said quietly, “and then hold your hands out.” As Helga did this, he picked up the roll of
silver tape from the table, and then wrapped it round her wrists until it
looked as if she was wearing a pair of silver boxing gloves.
Elsa looked at
her grandmother, who was now wearing a light pink nightdress with a print of
flowers on it, as Jay then pulled a pair of white socks up over the silver
gloves and the cuffs of her nightdress, and taped over the cuffs. He then selected a length of rope and walked
behind Helga, guiding her hands behind her as Elsa swung her legs to and fro.
“Are you going
to tie our legs as well – this tightly,” she said quietly as Jay then took a
longer length of rope and wound it round her grandmother’s upper body, forcing
her arms against her sides and framing her chest.
“We will – but
not yet,” Jay said with a smile as he wound the rope down, pulling it tight
with each pass, and then fed the rope under one arm, up and around the back of her
neck, and then under the other arm.
“There,” Jay
said quietly as he looked at the screen, and then walked over to retrieve the
USB stick as Elsa was helped to stand up, “let us go downstairs and await the
others. Mrs McPhee, if you and Ophelia
would take Soo and her girls up next?”
“Aye,” the
masked woman said as they walked back down the stairs and into the front room,
Helga sitting on the couch and Elsa next to her as Jay opened another bag, and
took out more lengths of rope.
“Time to secure
our legs,” Helga said as she saw the two masked women walk past with Soo, Jen
and Suki.
“Indeed,” Jay
said with a smile as he crossed her ankles, and then used the rope to bind them
tightly together.
“I’m not scared
Grandma,” Elsa said as she rested her head against her grandmother, “it feels
as if you’re hugging me.”
“Good,” Helga
said as she felt the rope between her legs and the tug before Jay secured the
ends, and then the second band of rope around her legs below her knees. Elsa watched Jay as he took the length of
rope around and between her grandmother’s legs, and then tied the ends off,
before he smiled at the young girl and crossed her ankles.
“All right,
I’ve done what you asked,” Suki said as she looked at Ophelia. “Now what?”
“Please stand
up,” the masked woman said she pulled the chair back, and Suki looked at her
daughters. All three of them were
wearing matching pyjamas – the tops had pink sleeves and a white body, with a
picture of a rainbow on the front and animals on the sleeves, while the bottoms
were the same shade of pink with the same animals printed on them.
Both girls were
sitting on the bed, watching as Mrs McPhee was wrapping rope around their legs
below their knees to held them together.
They both had their hands behind their backs, and bands of rope round
their upper bodies – and as they watched Ophelia wrap their mother’s hands with
the silver tape, they knew she would be like them soon.
“Let me guess –
delayed withdrawals from the accounts in the far east?”
“Correct,” Ophelia
said as she pulled the socks up over her hands, and then taped them to her
pyjama sleeve. She then took Suki’s
hands behind her back and started to lash them together with the length of
white rope.
“We’ll be
together, correct,” she said as she looked at her daughters, short lengths of
rope holding their dark hair in pigtails in the same way as hers was.
“Of course ye
will be,” Mrs McPhee said as she stood up and smiled at them, “but fer noo,
stand up and get yer balance. Ye’ll need
to cum doonstairs wi me – slowly.”
“I’ll see you
in a few minutes, girls,” Suki said with a smile as Ophelia helped the two
girls to shuffle out of the room, before gasping as the rope was pulled tightly
round her arms and body. “Why does I
have to be tight,” she whispered as Ophelia took the rope round again.
“Believe it or
not, because it is safer this way,” the masked woman replied as Suki felt the
bands tightening, and then cinched the binding by taking the rope under one
arm, round the back o f her neck and under the other arm.
“Now, shall we
go and join your girls?”
“Ah’ll take
her,” Mrs McPhee said as she appeared with Rhona,” “the gahls ahr getting
washed, and then they will come for you tae take care o them.”
“See you in a
few minutes,” Rhona said as she took a seat, the masked man coming in as
Ophelia left.
“Now,” he said
with an Australian accent, “this is what you are going to do…”
“Well, I guess
we’re all the same now,” Clare said as she and Rhona came into the front
room. Rhona was wearing a short sleeved
pink nightdress, while her sister had on a long sleeved white nightgown, rope
round their upper body in two bands and holding their wrists together behind
their back as they sat on the couch with the other three girls. Helga and Suki watched from the armchairs as Ophelia
and Mrs McPhee knelt down and started to secure their ankles, both girls feeling
the rope rubbing on their legs below their knees.
Both Helga and
Suki also had their ankles and legs secured, watching the girls as they
wriggled on the couch. They were not in
a position to say much – both women had silver tape wrapped round their heads,
as they looked at the girls.
“What happened
to your mother, Soo,” Clare asked as she felt the rope round her ankles.
“Mister Edwards
said we all have to be quiet for the night,” Soo said quietly, “so he made sure
Mum and Elsa’s grandmother were first – when your mother comes in, she will be
the same, and then we’ll see how it is done.”
“Really,” Clare
said, feeling excited at what was happening to her – and then she saw her
mother come in with Ophelia and the other masked man. Helen was also wearing a long sleeved white
nightgown, and her upper body was bound like the others – but she also had a
silver band round her head, covering her mouth as she sat on a third armchair.
“Ughrrlshhlrht,”
she mumbled as Jay knelt down and started to bind her ankles together.
“Chldbhwhrs,”
Helga replied, Suki nodding as Mrs McPhee looked at the girls.
“Time fer ye
all tae be quiet,” she said with a smile, “Ah need ye tae open yer moof, ane by
ane, and relax – this isnae sae bad.”
“Okay – I’ll go
first,” Rhona said as she opened her mouth, Mrs McPhee gently pushing a folded
cloth in before Ophelia pulled a knotted strip of towelling between her lips,
tying it tightly round her head as she closed her lips over it. Mrs McPhee smiled as Clare opened her mouth,
as one by one the girls had a cloth put in their mouth and the towelling strip
round their head.
As Ophelia tied
the strip between Elsa’s lips, Mrs McPhee picked up a roll of white tape, and
peeled the end loose. She then stuck it
to Rhona’s cheek before she wound the tape tightly round her head, covering her
mouth and pressing her hair against the back of her head.
As she moved over,
Ophelia picked up a roll of silver tape, which she wound round Rhona’s head on
top of the white band. She then followed
Mrs McPhee until all five girls had the same band round their heads as their
mothers and grandmother.
“Turn the
television on – they can watch for a while,” Jay said as he and the second man
left the room.
“Well,” he
whispered as they went into the kitchen.
“The plan
worked – they picked up the signal we sent on the dark web, and moved to their
plan B. My superiors have them in
custody now.”
“Good – I will
make a sizable donation to a charity for this,” Jay said with a smile as they
went back in. All four watched as the
bound and gagged families wriggled round silently.
“Ghrnhhnn? Ghrrhhnnn?”
As Helga slowly
opened her eyes, she saw Elsa looking at her over the band of silver. They were lying on the bed in her bedroom, as
Helga saw the sunlight coming through the window.
“Whtthmhshtt?” She looked past Elsa at the clock, seeing it
was five in the morning before she sat herself up. Seeing her bound legs, she shifted round as
Elsa sat herself up, then they both sat on the edge of the bed.
“Hrtthshthhlhr?”
“Hdhtnfhnksh,”
Helga said a few minutes later.
“Chnushtndhp?”
Elsa nodded as
she managed to push herself onto her feet, Helga doing the same before they
both started to jump to the bedroom door.
Stopping for a moment, they both jumped down the corridor and then
looked in the next room.
Suki was lying
on the bed, Soo and Jen either side of her on their sides, lengths of rope from
their bound ankles to the foot of the bed.
They were all still sleeping, as Helga heard someone call out “Whsthrr?”
Both of them
jumped down two doors and then went in to see Helen lying on the floor, her
ankles pulled back and tied to her chest ropes.
Her daughters were lying on the bed, ropes from their ankles to the foot
of the bed as they wriggled round.
“Hlghgg? Hafthghn?”
“Hfhnkdsh –
thmtrhshlhrm,” Helga said as she jumped to a chest od drawers, opening the top
one and then looking over her shoulder as she found a tablet and pressed on the
front…
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