Seventies Bound – School’s Out
Thursday
March 23rd 1978
2 pm
“Well, there
they go,” Paula said as she looked out of the staff room window, the last of
the pupils at Rosewood Primary School walking off with their parents. “The Easter holiday has officially begun.”
“Really early this
year, isn’t it,” Donna said as she put a spoonful of Maxwell House into her
mug, and added the hot water. Her long
red hair fell over the shoulders of her white roll neck sweater, the olive
coloured corduroy pinafore dress buttoned up the front over it. She then added the milk and sat down with her
drink, crossing her legs as she pulled up her white fabric boots. They had a wide fur band at the top, and
crepe soles.
“True – but
you’re heading home tomorrow,” Paula said with a smile as she took another of
the wooden armchairs and sat down. She
was in her mid-forties, a good twenty years older than Donna, and was wearing a
black waistcoat over a lilac coloured jumper and knee length linen skirt, her
lower legs in a pair of tan coloured knee length leather boots.
“Yeah – I’d
rather be in town this weekend, but Gran is coming, so the three line whip has
been applied,” Donna said with a sigh before she put her mug to her lips. “So what do you fancy doing tonight?”
“Fish and
chips,” Paula said, “and then there’s Cannon on BBC1, an old William Wyler film
on BBC2, or whatever is on LWT…”
“Oh yeah, you
didn’t buy the TV Times this week.”
“No she
didn’t,” Hilary said as she joined them.
The three women shared a house in the town, and Hilary was the middle of
the three, having just turned thirty two.
She was also wearing a matching jumper and skirt – in her case in burnt
umber, with a brown spotted and sleeveless jerkin fastened over it, and black
knee length tight boots.
“I told you,
the newsagent sold out,” Paula laughed as she adjusted the brown and taupe
headscarf she had tied round her neck.
“So, who’s getting home first?”
“Me,” Hilary
said quietly. “Want me to get the fish
and chips?”
“Nah – I’ll
pick them up after the meeting and bring them back. Donna, can you get something to drink on the
way home at Victoria Wines?”
“Sure,” the
redhead said with a smile…
5 pm
As Hilary
opened the house door, she shook her umbrella out and then put it against the
wall, before she unfastened her long black leather coat and hung it on the peg
fixed to the wall. She checked her
reflection in the mirror, patting her long auburn hair, and walked into the
front room and turned on the main light – then stood still as she processed
what was happening.
The first thing
was the fact that the newspapers from the last week were scattered over the
floor, rather than neatly placed in the wooden rack.
The second
thing was that the television was on, and a young man was sitting on a chair,
watching the news. He had short blonde
hair, and was wearing a blue denim jacket and jeans, the wing collar of his
white shirt over the jacket collar. He
looked annoyingly familiar as well.
And the third
was the hand that had been clamped over her mouth from behind, as a second male
voice said “looks like one of the ladies came home. Don’t make a sound, lady, and you’ll be
fine.”
“Htthhlhhhruhhh?”
“Now Miss
Jenkins – or perhaps I should call you Hilary – let’s not have any trouble.”
It was the
young man sitting down who spoke – and now Hilary recognised him. Danny Hughes – a former pupil who had been
sent to Borstal six months before for vandalising the school…
“Dhnneee?”
“Oh good – you
do remember me. This is Steve – and
we’re going to stay the night until we can get a train in the morning. So that means we need to keep you and the
other two nice and quiet.” He stood up
and took from his pocket a roll of brown sticking plaster, smiling as he tore a
strip off, and said “so we start with you.
Lips together, Miss.”
Hilary felt
something sharp against her back, and nodded as the hand was taken away, the
cloth stuck firmly over her mouth as the adhesive pulled on the skin round it,
before she was pushed face down onto the couch.
She turned her head to see Danny walk behind her and pull her arms
behind her back, using a length of brown rope to secure them tightly together,
as whoever this Steve was used what she figured was more rope to secure her
ankles together.
She was then
rolled onto her side, as she got her first look at Steve. He was taller than Danny, and wearing a tan
leather jacket over a grey shirt, and black corduroy pants.
“Well now, Miss,”
Danny said as he looked at her, “you just stay there, and when the others get
here, you can spend some time out together…”
She tried to push herself back, feeling for the knot at her wrists with
her fingers as she saw the kitchen knife in Steve’s hand, and worrying about
what they would do…
6 pm
“Hey – I got a
bottle of White Lightning,” Donna said as she came in, walking to the kitchen
and putting the bottle on the table before she put her handbag over the side of
the chair. “Let me get some glasses and…
“Hilary?” Donna could hear that the television was on, but
there was no reply. Wondering where
Hilary was, she walked into the front room – and put her hands to her mouth as
she saw Hilary struggling on the couch, the front of her jerkin open now and
her skirt riding up as a result of her struggles.
“Oh my god,
what…”
“GHTTHHTTTT!”
“Why…” Donna then gasped as she felt the sharp
pressure on her back, and heard a man say “welcome back – and how nice of you
to bring us something to drink. Now, is
you know what is good for you, slowly put your hands behind your back.”
Hilary looked
at her housemate, shaking her head as she mumbled “Hmshreee” through the
plaster gag while Donna felt whoever was there grab her wrists, and then the
rough rubbing on her wrists as they were forced tightly together.
“Now,” Donna
heard as Danny walked in front of you, “you’re a nice looking lady. How come you’re stuck with teach here?”
“Because I’m a
teacher too,” Donna said quietly as she felt the cords pulled tighter on her
arms, and then the pressure as the ends were tied off. She was then taken by surprise as the brown
rope was passed round her body, pulling her arms firmly into her sides as she
heard the soft squeak where it rubbed on her dress.
“Oh god, no,”
she whispered as whoever was behind her continued to pass the rope around her,
framing her chest, “no, please…”
“Oh calm down –
we’re not those kind of guys,” Danny said with a smile as he looked at her, “we
just need you two out of the way when the old lady gets here – then she joins
you.”
“Why this
house?”
“I beg your
pardon?”
Donna looked at
Danny, before she said “I don’t know who you are, but I think Hilary does – and
she was afraid, wanted me to get out. So
why this house? You’ve escaped from
Borstal, right?”
“Perceptive –
what gave it away?”
“The regulation
haircut – my brother burnt a shed down, so I recognise it. What did you two do?”
“Me – vandalism
at your school. Steve – burglary,” Danny
said as the second man made Donna sit in an armchair, and then started to tie
her booted ankles together as she twisted round.
“Just
burglary?”
“So far as I
know,” Donna said quietly as Steve looked at Donna, and then tied the rope off
before he tied her legs over her skirt, the corduroy squeaking even more. As he did this, Danny folded a dish cloth.
“Open up – and
relax,” he said, Donna nodding as he pushed the cloth in, and then tied a
doubled length of rope round her head, the cords going between her lips and
keeping the cloth in place. She knew she
was going to be quiet – and prayed that was all…
7 pm
As Paula opened
the front door, she balanced the three newspaper wrapped parcels on one arm and
called out “I hope you’re all hungry.”
“Hllphhsss.”
She heard the
low mumble, but didn’t think anything of it as she walked to the kitchen – only
to stop as she saw the blonde haired man standing there, the kitchen knife in
his hand.
“What the… Who are you, and why are you…”
“Hello Miss
Standish.”
Paula suddenly
turned round, her eyes wide as she said “Danny?
Danny Hughes? What are you doing
here?”
“School’s out –
and thanks for bringing me and Steve tea.
But right now, I want you to put them on the table, then take your scarf
off and give it to me.”
“Have you hurt
Donna or Hilary?”
“Just made sure
they stayed where they were. Now, are
you going to do what I asked you, very nicely, to do?”
Looking at the
two young men, Paula slowly nodded as she put the parcels down, and then untied
her scarf, handing it to Danny and watching as he rolled it into a band, and
then tied a knot in the middle.
“Put your hands
behind your back.”
“no need to be
so forceful,” she whispered as she felt the other man grab her wrists and hold
them together, and then some sort of rope as it was pulled tightly round them, forcing
them together as band after band was added to the binding. She heard him laugh as the ropes was tied
off, and then a longer length was passed round her arms and body. As she glanced down, she realised it was the
new skein of white cotton rope she had bought to replace the washing line with
– only now it was been sued to hold her arms firmly to her sides, as well as
making her chest more prominent.
“Okay, so
you’re in charge,” she said quietly, “I want to be with my friends.”
“Of course –
once you open your mouth.”
Paula nodded
and complied, feeling the material of her scarf on her tongue as the knot was
pulled back behind her teeth, and then the pressure on her cheeks as the ends were
taken round and secured at the back of her head. She was then pushed to the front room, her
eyes widening as she said “Hmhghddd” when she walked in.
Donna was still
in the armchair, twisting round as the ropes squeaked on her pinafore
dress. The rope between her lips was
darker at the corners, and Paula could see the damp edges of the white cloth
that were peeking out. Hilary now had
her arms bound to her sides in the same way as the other two, and was twisting
round, her boots squeaking as they rubbed together.
“Huuhllrhtt,”
she said as Paula was sat in another armchair, Steve kneeling down with a
length of rope and binding her ankles tightly together, then folding her skirt
back to secure her legs below her knees.
As he did that, his hands stroked down her legs, Paula looking down and
shaking her head at that – but Steve just smiled as he stood up, following
Danny out of the room as the three women looked at each other.
“Shhwwhtdhwhdhnhh,”
Donna asked as she twisted round again.
“Dhntphnhhcc,”
Paula mumbled as she felt the scarf starting to absorb the saliva form her
mouth. “Whdhntnwhntthpuhkkk.”
“Thhwhhttt?”
“Rhmmhbhrrthefhlmm? Dhrthhmhrreee?”
Donna and
Hilary looked at each other and nodded.
They had watched the film on television the week before – two men had
robbed a supermarket, one of them holding the daughter and wife of the manager
hostage. One scene had the girl coughing
with her mouth taped over - and the dialogue was suddenly very real to both of
them.
They could hear
the two boys laughing in the kitchen, as they realised their supper was been
eaten, while Paula looked round. She
could see the telephone sitting on the table – and then she saw the wires had
been cut next to the junction box, so she knew trying to get help that way was not
an option.
At least they
had left the television on – if only they had not left it on London Weekend
Television….
9.30 pm
Paula looked at
Hilary as she lay on her side, her eyes closed and her chest gently rising and
falling as she breathed in and out through her nose, while Donna had her head
to the side, the rope now dripping as the saliva started to run from the corner
of her mouth.
The laughing
and talk from the kitchen had stopped, as she tried desperately to find any
give in the rope round her wrists – but with no joy.
“Hey.”
She looked to
the side to see Steve standing there, a slightly glazed look in his eyes as he
walked in and checked the ropes on the other two. “You are one hot momma,” he said as he knelt
in front of her, looking at her as she said “Hrruhdhrhnk?”
“No, I’m
happy,” he said quietly as he looked at her, the knot between her teeth dark
and moist. There was a look in his eyes
that worried Paula, and then her worry was increased as he stroked his hand
down his leg. She tried to move out of
the way, but he just looked at her and shook his head, as he moved his hand up
her leg, under her skirt…
“Don’t touch
her you bastard!”
Paula was shocked
to see Danny pull the other man back, and throw him to the floor. “I don’t care what you did to get you in that
place, you don’t do it with me here!”
“Whtddhhdhddhh?”
“Forget it,
Miss Standish,” Danny said – and then he was pulled back by Steve, Paula
watching as the two young men fought each other, finding herself hoping Danny
would win…
“Get them!”
She snapped her
head to the left as she saw the two policemen run in, separating the youths and
dragging them out as a third copper came over and eased the scarf from her
mouth.
“Thank you,” she
croaked as the other two women stirred, “how did you…”
“We were
checking all the places he could have come – you were just last on the list,”
he said as he looked at the other two women, “you okay while I deal with them?”
Paula nodded,
grateful that help had come at last…
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