Chapter Thirteen

All Tied Up and Nowhere to Go

I awoke in the back of a van. I lay on my side with my wrists bound tightly behind my back. I had an itchy nose. I looked up in the gloom. Rachel was beside me, tied up equally as secure. We bumped around as the van drove on, colliding into each other every now and then. I looked up, but could only see Grace’s shadow reflected on the wall. Rachel and I both slid against the front wall as the brakes went on some time later. The van stilled. We looked at each other.

“She only wants me,” Rachel croaked, her voice a small whisper. “First chance you get, run like hell.”

The back door swung open. Grace stood looking at us for a moment, and then she reached forward, and grabbed me by my bound ankles, pulling me out of the van. I hobbled stiffly on the gravel-covered ground, willing myself to stay upright. I could just about walk in my restraints, making tiny steps as she pulled me forward. We were in a car park. We must have been driving for some time, because it was dark now. Old abandoned buildings stood crumbling around one side of the space, casting huge shadows over us. But there were plenty of vehicles here, which I thought strange. Even stranger was how some of these cars were shaking rhythmically. I finally realized what was going on, when the interior light of one car lit up at some distance. I was able to see the arms and legs of a couple making love, entwined around each other. The bathhouse was as public as I liked to be when it came to sex; at least I knew everyone was on a level playing field there, plus you could always have a little privacy when the clouds of steam covered you. This sort of thing was an activity I’d never tried.

A few people were scattered about, watching the proceedings from a little distance—one of them, a man who leant against a motorbike, had a hand buried in his pants. Everyone was busy watching everyone else. I hoped someone would notice me. I hoped that someone would help.

“Let me go, Grace,” I whispered, although my voice felt as restrained as my hands and feet.

“If you scream, I’ll hurt Rachel,” she said in a clipped voice. “If you try to run, I’ll hurt Rachel. If you call me Grace one more time, I’ll really hurt Rachel.”

I looked at the strange woman; at the dervish who had charmed Tally, and blinded the rest of us. She was all business--even in the gloom I could see her serious face. Her voice had been devoid of any emotion. I suddenly felt scared; more scared than I had done since this whole sorry affair began.

Grace took a route through the area that avoided the onlookers. We passed a large estate car; a woman was going down on a man on the back seats. The couple both waved when they saw us.

“Stay a bit!” the happy-looking man called out as we walked stiffly past.

“Enjoy the show!” the plump woman held his cock in her hand as she yelled at us.

“Whores,” the Retriever muttered beneath her breath.

We passed more cars, each one containing a couple having sex. A vintage sports car held a man who was receiving a hand-job from a blonde woman. An ordinary family car had two men kissing and fondling inside.

We had to inch around a massive off-road vehicle; a Hum-Vee, or something big and American that I didn’t recognize. There must have been four people inside, all humping away at each other. Dirty hip-hop music pounded from the slightly open window. The Retriever slowed down as she caught sight of the fun going on inside. I moved away from her just a fraction, but she did something to my elbow that made me gasp with pain. She returned her gaze to what I could now see as four women totally into their group sex session. One woman was on her back with her legs wide open; the second woman sucked on her pussy with enthusiasm. Woman number three pushed a dildo into the second woman’s arse, whilst she in turn was kissing the fourth. My eyes boggled at the seamless way they all moved together; everyone knew what they had to do, and everyone was working as a team. They all looked incredibly good. I realized that the Retriever was breathing heavily next to me. She inched closer to the car, reached a slim hand through the gap left by the lowered window. Woman number four leaned back; she let the Retriever stroke along her rounded backside, and to her pussy, shuddering when she slipped her fingers inside. I struggled too, but Grace’s free hand went around my throat.

“Bitch,” she snarled. I didn’t know if she were addressing me or the woman in the car who thrust against her hand. “Clean.” Grace removed her hand from the woman’s crotch. I could see the glistening juices over her fingers, but soon I couldn’t see a thing as the woman licked and sucked herself off the Retriever. My clit throbbed, demanding attention. Now when we started moving again, it wasn’t just my restraints that hampered my effort to walk.

The Retriever directed us to a lone tree in the corner of the car park. It was almost pitch black there. However the darkness was illuminated by a glint of metal; she held up a small knife, angling it to me.

“Move, and you’re dead.” I froze as she sliced through the bindings around my ankles and my wrists. “Think on what I said. Think long and hard.” I glared at her as she recited the words that I had said to Rachel only hours before.

“You saw us?” My voice trembled. I willed myself to calm down.

“Nice couple,” she replied. “I liked what you did with the toilet paper.”

My heart sank. How long had she been there in Tally’s flat? How long had she been keeping an eye on us?

“You got good instincts when it comes to domination,” she said casually. “Pity that Rachel is such a useless slut. Worst agent in the Sisterhood, six years in a row,” she said with a chuckle before she turned to leave.

“Wait!” I called out. “You can’t just…” Even in the darkness I saw Grace stiffen at the upcoming order. “I want to stay with Rachel.”

She faced me once more. “Why?” she sounded amused.

“She’s my friend,” I said pathetically.

“She’s the worst agent I’ve ever seen,” Grace stated. “Even someone like you can do way better than her.”

“I’ll just follow you back to the van,” I said defiantly, standing straighter.

“That would be unwise,” she said slowly.

“Please,” I whispered. “Let me stay with her.” It wasn’t purely for selfless reasons. There would be no way I’d find Yvonne and the other missing women if I lost Rachel.

“Do you love her?” The Retriever’s question brought me up short.

“I…I think,” I stammered. Grace moved away, striding into the dark. “I want her to be the first to know!” I cried.

Grace looked back at me with a cruel grin. “Fine.”

I ran behind the Retriever, but once I reached her, she held up her knife once more; it looked an awful lot bigger than I remembered. I wondered if this was a different weapon, and how many she had on her.

“You cannot save her. You know that, right?” she asked me with almost-concern in her voice.

I nodded. “I just want to be with her as long as I can.”

Grace pushed me into the back of the van. She retied my hands, but left my ankles free.

Rachel shook her head when she saw me. “What are you doing?” she hissed. “You have to leave.”

“What did I tell you about ordering me around?” I replied, steadying myself as the van tore out of the parking lot.

“We’re both finished,” Rachel said with a sob. I inched over to her, laying down beside her curled-up form as we continued on our journey. I wrapped my legs around her, holding her to me. “It’s the workhouse for you, and who knows what for me.”

I shushed the crying agent, kissing the back of her neck.

“Want to know something strange?” I asked, nuzzling against Rachel’s hair. “Grace asked me if I loved you.”

“She did?” Rachel twisted around to look at me, surprised.

“Uh-huh.”

“What did you say?” she whispered, stilling in my embrace.

“I said you were too disobedient to love.”

Rachel started chuckling. It wasn’t long before the sound of her laughter made me smile too.