The cool autumn air carried the scent of warm cider and cinnamon as Kayla Grace strolled into Hazeldale’s annual fall festival with her two best friends, Madelyn Paige and Andrea Acosta. The festival was in full swing, with booths lined up along the park’s cobblestone path, offering everything from handcrafted goods to classic fair snacks. Bright orange and yellow leaves fluttered down from the trees, adding to the festive ambiance. As they walked, Kayla was hard at work reciting what she believed to be one of the best odes to fall ever written.

“And hats and scarves and knee socks and wearing tights for the first time in months and when the mornings are all chilly and you can see your breath and draw little pictures on foggy windows and plaid stuff and ankle boots and…uh…something about pumpkins and baking cookies?”

Her mind drew a blank. "Shit, I thought I knew the whole thing.”

Andrea laughed, “that was pretty good though, I’m impressed.”

“Thank you,” said Kayla with a bow, “at least someone appreciates it.”

She was referring to Madelyn who had been giving her a hard time all week about Kayla’s efforts to memorize the whole thing.

“I’m just so over Taylor Swift,” Madelyn said, rolling her eyes.

“I can see Chloe is already rubbing off on you,” Kayla teased, nudging her best friend in the shoulder.

Madelyn immediately blushed as Kayla and Andrea giggled.

Kayla was so happy to have the day off and be able to enjoy some fun with her friends. After all, as a reporter for the Hazeldale Tribune, it wasn’t often that she got to unwind without a story to chase, or bad guys looking to tie her up. Her black booties clicked softly on the ground, her white wool socks peeking out just above the tops. She had one of her favorite fall fits: a plain white shirt paired with a fuzzy black coat along with black jean shorts over sheer tights. It was cozy, cute, and perfect for a day at the festival.

“I know we come to this every year, but I’m literally so excited,” Kayla said, her eyes scanning the crowd. “I mean, yes I’m happy that it’s fall, and the festival is fun and everything, but it’s been a year since I’ve seen Stardust and I cannot wait!”

“You and that pony,” Madelyn teased, “You’d think you were still a kid the way you light up when you talk about it.”

She was dressed in quite the fashionable getup, pairing a trendy maroon sweater with a brown skater skirt along with sheer black tights and form fitting knee high boots. What really made the fit stand out was her accessories, namely the trendy suspenders and black beret.

Kayla grinned. “Some things never get old.”

“Plus,” Andrea chimed in, “Stardust is practically a festival icon by now. You’d have to be heartless not to love that little guy.”

She too had put on a cute and cozy fall outfit, combining a black jean shorts with a mustard knit sweater over which she’d pulled a square neck gingham camisole. Her legs were wrapped in a pair of opaque tights with her feet tucked into her favorite pair of low top converse. Although you’d never know they were low top thanks to the chunky leg warmers she had on.

“Speaking of heartless,” Madelyn said, gesturing with her nose at the familiar figure approaching them.

Kayla knew without even looking that Madelyn was referring to Jennifer. Over the last few months, things had shifted between the two reporters. While once bitter rivals, they now seemed to be turning a page in their relationship. It wasn’t exactly friendship, but their interactions had cooled down to something more tolerable—more just… rivals. It wasn’t a huge step forward, but Kayla could at least admit that things with Jennifer weren’t as unbearable as they used to be.

Jennifer was dressed impeccably, as usual—her red sweater hugging her figure, tucked neatly into a tight-fitting black skirt. The sheen of her pantyhose shimmered subtly in the sunlight, perfectly complementing the elegant heels she wore. Her perfectly styled hair was pulled back into a ponytail with not a hair out of place. Even in the casual setting of a town festival, Jennifer looked like she was ready to step in front of a camera at any moment.

“Well, if it isn’t Kayla Grace,” Jennifer announced, her voice laced with mock formality as she sauntered over to the trio. She planted her hands on her hips, her smirk as sharp as ever.

Kayla crossed her arms, leaning back on one foot as she met Jennifer's gaze, her smile polite but cool. “Hey, Jennifer. Anything exciting going on?”

Jennifer let out a dramatic sigh, rolling her eyes. “Ugh, no,” she moaned, tossing her notebook into her tote bag with a huff. “It’s so boring. There’s no scandals, no angle, it’s just… a fun festival. What a waste.”

Kayla couldn’t help but laugh at Jennifer’s frustration. “Isn’t that a good thing? You know, people just having a good time for once?”

Jennifer shot her a withering look. “No, it’s dreadful. I want there to at least be some action I can report on. Otherwise, this is all so bland and boilerplate. At least it’s the biggest event in town, and like the whole city is here.” She glanced around, clearly unimpressed. “Hopefully there’s at least something going on that I can spin.”

“Not all news needs to be sensationalist, you know,” Kayla said, raising an eyebrow as she teased.

“Oh please,” Jennifer scoffed, waving a hand dismissively. “Spare me the lecture. This day is bad enough as it is. Anyway,” she added, changing the subject as her eyes flicked between the trio, “what are you three up to?”

Madelyn, who had been quietly observing the exchange, chimed in with a sly smile. “Just trying to stay out of trouble. You know, the usual.” She gave a playful shrug, her eyes twinkling as if daring the universe to stir something up.

Andrea, standing next to Kayla, nudged her with an elbow. “Yeah, but with her around, I’m sure we’ll find some,” she said, laughing lightly.

Jennifer smirked, giving Kayla a sideways glance. “Well, I’ll be sure to keep an eye out. Maybe you’ll end up being the headline after all. Seeing you bound and gagged would really brighten up my day.”

Kayla rolled her eyes, “I’m sure it would.”

“Well, I should probably get going. If there is actually any action to be had, I sure as hell don’t want to miss it.”

Jennifer waved goodbye and then turning on her designer heels she carried off. Madelyn and Andrea immediately turned to Kayla, stunned looks on their faces.

“What?” Kayla asked.

“Don’t what me,” said Madelyn, “that was actually like…a totally normal interaction between you two. Are you feeling okay? Do you have a cold?”

She reached up and pressed her palm against Kayla’s forehead in dramatic fashion.

Kayla swatted Madelyn’s hand away, laughing. “Oh, come on. It wasn’t that bad.”

Madelyn raised an eyebrow, feigning concern. “Are you sure? Because that was practically civil and you two are never civil, not even close.”

“She’s got a point,” chimed Andrea, “I mean I don’t know Jennifer as well as you two do, but from the few times I’ve seen you interact it’s like fireworks going off in a garage.”

Madelyn turned to Andrea, a proud smile on her face.

“Poignant and poetic, nice job Andrea.”

In response, Andrea cupped her chin with both hands and flashed an exaggerated, sweet smile.

“Why, thank you!”

“Look, whatever conspiracy theories you two are cooking up over there, you can put to rest,” Kayla said, her eyes twinkling with amusement at her friends antics.

Madelyn raised an eyebrow, her curiosity piqued. “Oh really? So what’s the truth then?”

Kayla shrugged, “I don’t know, we just kind of…stopped with all the immature insults and started trying to get along I suppose. Speaking for myself, it gets exhausting being at odds with someone for so long. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good rivalry, but I think maybe we both realized that it was reaching a fever pitch that we both wanted to tone down a bit.”

“Wow, you have such a way with words,” Andrea remarked in awe.

Kayla chuckled. “Thanks. I guess after so many encounters where we end up tied up and gagged together, you start to see things a bit differently. Sometimes it’s just easier to find some common ground and work together, even if it’s only for the sake of avoiding more drama.”

“Well, as an ardent fan of all things drama,” said Madelyn, “I’m going to miss it.”

Kayla rolled her eyes, “something tells me you’ll be fine. Now come on, let’s not dwell on this all day. I don’t want to miss Stardust’s show!”

The trio linked arms as they strolled off further into the festival. They spent the better part of the afternoon just casually walking around, occasionally stopping at a booth or two. Madelyn bought some handmade scarves, Andrea purchased some pumpkin butter, and Kayla bought…

“Socks?” Madelyn’s eyebrows shot up in surprise as she saw the colorful bundle of socks Kayla was clutching. They were handmade from a local vendor and had all these cute fall designs on them like pumpkins, crows, and cute little ghosts.

Kayla grinned sheepishly. “Yeah, I couldn’t resist. They were too cute to pass up.”

Madelyn raised an eyebrow and smirked. “Funny choice, considering well…you know.”

Kayla rolled her eyes but laughed. “Oh, come on. It’s not like buying socks is going to change my luck. If bad guys want to gag me, they’ll find a way to do it whether I’m wearing socks or not. At least if they use these, they’ll be clean and cute.”

Madelyn chuckled, “can’t argue with that logic.”

Suddenly, a burst of excitement rippled through the crowd. A voice crackled over the festival’s loudspeakers, cutting through the ambient chatter and music. “Attention, everyone! Stardust’s show is about to begin! Head over to the main stage for an unforgettable performance with your favorite miniature pony!”

Kayla turned to her friends with urgency, “hurry! We need to make sure we get a good view.”

The trio took off toward the main stage, and thankfully arrived in time such that they had a great view of where the action would take place. Before long, a man took the stage and right away Kayla could tell something was off. Just the look on his face gave it away. He seemed nervous, concerned even.

“Something’s not right,” Kayla muttered.

“What’s that?” Madelyn asked. Andrea turned her head too.

“I said something’s not right,” repeated Kayla, “look at that guy’s face. Something’s up.”

Sure enough, as the man reached the edge of the stage he lifted a microphone up to his face and delivered what could only be described as heartbreaking news.

“Sorry folks, but I’m afraid I must be the bearer of bad news. Stardust’s show has been canceled.”

The crowd erupted in a collective gasp.

Kayla froze in place, her heart sinking. “What? Canceled?”

Andrea and Madelyn exchanged confused glances. “That’s weird,” Andrea said. “I wonder what happened.”

Kayla frowned. Stardust’s show was never canceled. The pony was the highlight of the festival. Besides, she had just seen on the news the other day that Stardust was in great health and was preparing for the festival. Why were they canceling the show at the last minute?

Just as she began to speculate, a somewhat familiar face appeared beside her—Jane Dawson. All that Kayla knew about her was that she had a seat on the city council. She looked flustered, her eyes darting around as though she were looking for someone.

“Kayla Grace,” Jane said, rushing over to her as she pushed past the bustling crowd. “Thank god you’re here. I could really use your help right now.”

“What’s going on, Jane?” Kayla asked, concern in her voice.

“Come with me. It’s urgent!”

Kayla, Madelyn, and Andrea all exchanged worried glances. Jane was clearly flustered and it didn’t take a genius detective to realize that it was probably related to Stardust. They followed the councilwoman through the crowd, pushing past throngs of worried spectators. When they were finally in the clear, Jane led them over to one of the event coordinator tents. She flashed a badge and then stepped inside.

There were a few tables set up, with interns either furiously typing away at their laptops or pacing around on the phone. They all looked just as anxious as Jane did.

“Sorry for all the fuss,” Jane said, taking a seat in a folding chair and crossing her nylon clad legs. “It’s just…it’s my first year organizing this festival and…fuck, it’s already gone to shit. Sorry, excuse my language. I'm just stressed.”

“You’re fine,” said Kayla, “I’ll count all this as off the record.”

She offered Jane a playful wink. This seemed to lighten the mood a bit as Jane offered a half smile in response.

“Thank you,” she said, “I suppose I should fill you in on what’s going on then.”

She took a deep breath and then gave Kayla and her friends the full scoop.

“Long story short, Stardust is missing. She was here this morning, but when the handlers went to retrieve her for the show she was gone. The door to her pen was wide open, so someone probably just left it unlocked and she escaped. Or…”

“Or, what?” Kayla asked, noticing the hesitation in Jane’s voice.

“Or someone let her out on purpose.”

Kayla’s reporting instincts kicked in immediately. “So you think there’s foul play involved?”

Jane nodded grimly. “I don’t want to jump to conclusions, but I have a hard time believing this was all just an accident. Stardust isn’t just a part of the fall festival, he is the festival. He has people watching over him like all the time. If that pony so much as sneezes, there’s someone there to wipe his nose.”

Madelyn grimaced. “Damn, it’s like a cult. And Stardust is the leader.”

“No,” Kayla rolled her eyes, “he’s just an important pony. Don’t be mean.”

“No, she’s right,” Jane nodded at Madelyn, “it’s kind of insane how beloved that pony is. Which is why his disappearance is no accident. This is my first time organizing this festival and I just can’t believe something like this is happening. I hate to have to bother you and ask for your help but I could really use it. The last thing I need is for the tabloids to start running stories about how terrible of a job I did. They’ll never let me organize the festival again!”

Kayla glanced at her friends. This was supposed to be a fun day off for the three of them. She felt bad roping them into an impromptu investigation like this, but at the same time it was about Stardust. Kayla felt like it was her duty to that sweet little pony to look into this matter and figure out just what the hell was going on for both Stardust’s sake and Jane Dawson’s.

“You know we’d follow you to the ends of the earth,” Madelyn chimed in.

Andrea nodded, “if you’re thinking about asking for our permission to chase this story, you don’t need it. We’re in this thing with you. Besides, I’m always reading about your adventures after the fact. I can’t tell you how excited I am to see one unfold up close!”

“Yeah, but remember what happened when I went undercover with you that one time?” Kayla asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I still had a blast,” Andrea said with a wink.

Kayla smiled, feeling more at ease knowing her friends were more than up for the task. She turned back to Jane.

“Okay, we’re in,” she said. “Where do we start?”

Jane let out a breath of relief. “Amazing, thank you! The best place to start is going to be down at the stable. Here, take these badges. If there’s any event security you can show them these and they’ll let you pass.”

Standing up, Jane handed a couple badges to Kayla and her friends. Already Kayla could tell that a huge weight had been lifted off Jane’s shoulders. ​​Kayla took the badges, glancing at Andrea and Madelyn. Andrea’s playful smile remained, while Madelyn looked equally ready for action.

“Leave it to Kayla Grace,” Madelyn began as they exited the tent and started off, “to turn a fun day at the fall festival into another thrilling adventure filled with intrigue and most likely peril.”

“Wait,” Andrea paused, a wondering look on her face, “isn’t Jennifer in charge of covering this event? Aren’t we kind of stepping on her toes here?”

As if summoned from far off at the mere mention of her name Jennifer had come running up to Kayla and her friends. She clutched her bag as she jogged over, stopping for a moment to catch her breath.

“I came…as soon as you texted…finally…some fucking action!”

Kayla scoffed, “Stardust is missing, have some respect.”

Jennifer chuckled as she brushed off her skirt and straightened her ponytail.

“No offense, but I couldn’t care less about that horse--"

"Miniature pony," Kayla interjected.

"Whatever, as long as I can get some good drama for my story, count me in.”

“Being friends with you was so a mistake,” Kayla grumbled.

Jennifer stuck out her tongue as Andrea and Madelyn sighed in unison.

“Some things never change,” said Madelyn.

Andrea waved her hands in the air, trying to get Kayla’s attention and peel her away from her spat with Jennifer.

“Earth to Kayla, hello!”

Kayla took notice of her friend, snapping back to reality and realizing there was no time to squabble with Jennifer.

“Look, here’s the deal,” Kayla’s tone was firm and direct, straight to business. “Stardust is missing and there may or may not be foul play involved. We don’t know yet. My instinct is to check the stables.”

Jennifer perked up, cutting Kayla off.

“Yeah, well my instinct is to get in touch with the lead handler, it’s a woman by the name of Sharona Wilson. She’s almost just as famous as Stardust. It’s her pony after all.”

“Yeah but what’s the angle?” Kayla asked.

“Well, if anyone gets close to Stardust, Sharona would know about it. So either she’s in on the whole thing and we just need a confession, or she knows who was watching him last and we can track them down.”

“Damn that’s really good,” Kayla was forced to admit that Jennifer’s lead sounded solid. Still, she felt like checking out the stables was at least worth a try. It was the scene of the crime after all.

“Here’s what we’ll do,” she said, quickly coming to a decision on how they could make this work, “we’ll break up into two groups, each chasing a lead. Let’s see what happens and then report back. That way we can cover as much ground as possible. I’ll take one, Jennifer you take the other.”

Jennifer folded her arms, arching an eyebrow. “I call Sharona, obviously. You can have fun mudding around that nasty stable.”

Kayla forced a smile, “It’ll be my pleasure.”

There was a beat of silence as the two reporters stared at each other. Madelyn and Andrea exchanged glances, clearly not thrilled about the prospect of working with Jennifer given how she and Kayla couldn’t go a second without wanting to pull each other’s hair out.

“If we’re splitting up, I call Kayla!” Andrea leapt toward her friend, wrapping her arms around Kayla’s upper body and giving her a tight squeeze.

“No fair,” groaned Madelyn, “that means I have to go with Jennifer.”

“Consider it an honor,” Jennifer shot back, “you’ll get to see how a real reporter works. You’re batting with the big leagues now.”

Madelyn forced a tight-lipped smile. “Oh, yes, I’m sure this will be… enlightening.”

Kayla fought back her own smile, knowing how annoyed Madelyn must be. At the end of the day it would be good for her. Now that Kayla and Jennifer were trying to get along, it would be great if they could all as a group learn to tolerate each other’s presence.

The plan would be for both groups to follow their leads and then meet back at the food cart pod after to discuss their findings. The food cart pod was Andrea’s idea. There was a fantastic taco truck she was dying to try out. She was hoping they could all get done quickly so as to have more time to eat. Kayla wasn’t holding her breath for that though. Knowing how her adventures usually turned out, it would probably be a long afternoon…

After splitting up the girls went their separate ways after their respective leads. Kayla and Andrea headed toward the stable, eventually encountering a set of event staff blocking their path as they got close.

“Sorry, but this area is closed off,” one of them remarked.

Kayla confidently stepped forward, flashing the badges that Jane had given her.

“We’re actually here on behalf of Jane Dawson and the event planning team.”

The staff looked over the badges and then looked Kayla and Andrea up and down. They were clearly suspicious of the two gals, but couldn’t deny the fact that the badges were legitimate and that they would need to let them through.

“Fair enough, come on through.”

Stepping aside, they lifted up the caution tape that was blocking the path allowing Kayla and Andrea to duck under and pass through.

“Alright,” said Kayla, breathing a temporary sigh of relief, “should be smooth sailing from here.”

Andrea raised an eyebrow in suspicion, “is it ever smooth sailing with you, Kayla?”

Kayla laughed, “good point.”

Arriving at the stable, they walked up to find the area totally empty. Aside from the two staff blocking the pathway there was no one else around. Under normal circumstances Kayla would have guessed that this area would be abuzz with staff and handlers, getting Stardust ready and helping to coordinate things. But with Stardust missing, the stables were a ghost town.

Kayla and Andrea walked into the main stable. It was basically one big room with a large stall taking up most of the space, the smell of hay lingered in the air.

“So uh…now what,” asked Andrea, plopping down on a nearby haystack.

Kayla looked around, investigating the locks on Stardust’s pen and the locks on the main stable doors.

“Two sets,” she mumbled to herself.

“Did you say something?” Chimed Andrea as she casually kicked her legs back and forth while she sat on the hay..

“Yeah, there’s two sets of locks. So even if Stardust’s handlers forget to lock the pen, they would have also had to forget to lock the main stable doors. Hard to believe that could just happen by accident.”

Before Kayla could ponder any further, the distant sound of voices broke the stillness. It was a seemingly heated conversation between two men, and even though they were still far off Kayla could just barely make out what they were saying.

"I can’t believe we're stuck kidnapping a pony," one grumbled, his frustration obvious. "We used to rob banks! This is humiliating."

His partner responded by shushing him. "Would you keep it down? God, have some fucking discretion will ya?!”

“Fuck off, there’s no one here. Just let me air my grievances. I’ve been bottling them up all day pretending to be a stupid fucking staff worker.”

Kayla's eyes widened. She quickly gestured to Andrea. They needed to hide fast! Thankfully there was a tall stack of hay in the corner of the stable. Rushing over, they slipped behind it and held their breaths as the men approached. Kayla peeked out from the side of the stack, watching the pair of men enter the stable.

One of them pulled out a pack of cigarettes, lighting one and then taking a long puff.

“Fuck, we used to be doing way cooler shit. Remember that bank robbery we got hired for?”

“Or that painting we stole.”

“Yeah, see, we’re scraping the bottom of the barrel here. Helping kidnap a pony, what a joke.”

Andrea nudged Kayla’s shoulder, a look of triumph on her face. Kayla shot back the same look, knowing she’d caught the whole confession on tape. Right as they hid, she’d started recording on her phone.

Ding!

Kayla immediately tensed up at the sound of Andrea’s phone going off. Unlike Kayla she hadn’t turned the sound off. A rookie mistake really, but then again Andrea wasn’t used to finding herself in situations like these.

Kayla knew they had little to no time to react if they didn’t want to find themselves in a tight situation. Grabbing Andrea’s arm, Kayla yanked her friend along as she took off from out behind the stacks of hay. Kayla was prepared to make a mad dash for the main doors, but she and Andrea were stopped in their tracks as soon as they darted out from their hiding place.

The men towered over them, arms folded and glares piercing. The one who had been smoking took another puff from his cigarette before tossing it on the ground and stomping it out.

“That could cause a fire you know,” Kayla scolded him, doing her best to ease the tension of the moment.

“That should be the least of your concerns,” the thug snarled back. “Who the hell are you, and what are you doing, hiding out in here?”

Kayla wanted so badly to be quick on her feet, coming up with some great reason for why she and Andrea were hiding behind that hay. The only problem was her mind was drawing a blank as to what she and Andrea could possibly be up to other than spying.

“We were…lost?”

Andrea couldn’t help but chuckle at Kayla’s feeble attempt to cover up the fact that she and Andrea were snooping. The thugs on the other hand were not laughing. Reaching forward they grabbed the two girls, quickly pinning their arms behind their backs.

“Hey, watch it!” Andrea twisted and wiggled her upper body as she tried to break free.

Unfortunately for Kayla and Andrea, they had been nabbed in a location where there was no shortage of bondage materials laying around, namely rope. Grabbing a few lengths from the pile, the thugs set to work wrapping loads of it around the wrists and upper arms of Kayla and Andrea.

With their arms tied, the two girls were then pushed as they both fell back onto the ground, their fall more than cushioned thanks to the thick layers of hay they fell onto. Kayla was just irritated so much of it was sticking to her tights, Andrea included.

“How’s this for exciting, huh?”

“Yeah, finally some fucking action.”

The thugs were clearly having a much better time than Kayla and Andrea. The one that had been smoking earlier pulled out another cigarette and lit it. He took a few deep puffs as his brow furrowed in concentration.

“So uh…what now?” His buddy asked.

Flicking the cigarette to the ground just like the first one the thug stomped it out before grabbing handfuls of rope tossing a few loops to his partner.

“Here’s what we do. Let’s make sure these two are nice and tied up. The stable is blocked off so we can just leave them here for now. We’ll reconnect with the others and figure out what to do with them long term. For now though, let’s have some fun.”

“Hell yeah, sounds good to me.”

Kayla and Andrea exchanged nervous glances between one another as the two goons approached them, rope in hand. They were really in the thick of it now! Their only hope now was that Jennifer and Madelyn were having better luck.

. . . . .

“So Kayla tells me you two are no longer beefing,” Madelyn nudged Jennifer playfully as they made their way through the festival grounds. “Is that true?”

Jennifer’s determined gaze was fixed forward as she walked, weaving her way skillfully through the crowds.

“Sure yeah I guess you could say we’re...managing.” She said it with a tone that suggested she wasn’t quite sure how to define their newfound tolerance for one another.

Madelyn chuckled. “Well that’s progress, I suppose. Though I have to admit, I’m going to miss all the drama between you two. God, it was like watching a reality tv program.”

Jennifer shot Madelyn an annoyed glare, which only served to make Madelyn’s smile grow wider. “Very funny. Now if you don’t mind we need to focus. Sharona just texted me back. She said to meet her inside the main parks and rec building.”

“Great, I’ll follow your lead.”

It didn’t take long for the pair to reach the building, the festival had been set up on the field just adjacent from the large parks and rec center. As the girls stepped inside they found the building to be incredibly quiet and totally empty.

“Shit, I don’t like these vibes,” Madelyn whispered.

Jennifer rolled her eyes. “Relax. Everyone’s outside enjoying the festival. Besides, I don’t even think this building is open.”

“So then why is Sharona telling us to meet her here?”

“Privacy, duh. She must know more about what happened to Stardust. Now come on, we need to find the room she said to meet her in.”

Jennifer led the way down a hallway that smelled faintly of chlorine from the pool on the other side of the building. Madelyn trailed behind, her heart thumping in her chest. The eerie silence of the usually bustling center was unsettling, the only sound now was their footsteps as they echoed down the long empty hallway.

“Alright, this is it,” Jennfier remarked as they arrived at the room that Sharona had told them to meet at.

Pushing the door open, she and Madelyn stepped inside. Sure enough there was Sharona, but she was in a rather incapacitated state to put it lightly.

“MMMMMMMPH!”

She was hogtied on the ground, her legs bound tightly together at the ankles and the knees. Her arms were pulled back behind her, wrists secured to her ankles. Her bare feet wiggled helplessly as she flopped around. Her discarded boots lay not far off, both of her socks stuffed in her mouth and visible underneath the layers of clear tape plastered about the lower half of her face.

Jennifer and Madelyn stood frozen, staring in disbelief at Sharona, helplessly bound and gagged on the floor. Before they could react, a loud slam echoed behind them—the door had been shut and locked. A sinister chuckle emerged from the shadows as four men stepped forward from the back of the room, each holding thick ropes.

“Well, well, well,” one of them sneered, “looks like we’ve got more guests for the party. Thanks for responding to the invite.”

He waved around a phone, most likely Sharona’s phone by the looks of it.

“Shit,” Jennifer cursed, realizing she and Madelyn had walked right into a trap.

With practiced coordination, they lunged forward, grabbing both women. Madelyn struggled but found her arms quickly pulled behind her back as thick ropes bound her wrists tightly together. Jennifer kicked at one of the men, but he caught her ankle, shoving it away as her heel flew off her nylon-clad foot.

“Not so fast, sweetheart,” he growled as the rope was cinched tightly behind her, sealing her wrists together. “Looks like we’re going to need to even things up a bit. Can’t have you using those heels as a weapon!”

Jennifer glared at her captor, but there was little she could do to stop him from reaching down and yanking her other heel off her foot. Madelyn was given the same treatment as one of the goons bent down and unzipped her black boots, tearing them off her feet and revealing the soft pink socks she wore underneath. After this, both she and Madelyn were forced down onto the cold floor, their ankles bound as well, immobilizing them.

Madelyn glanced over at Jennifer, her face flushed from her own struggles. “What did you say earlier? Batting with the big leagues?”

Jennifer scoffed quietly, but Madelyn was right. Her words were coming back to bite her in the ass big time.

With plenty of ropes at their disposal, the men continued their work of really trussing Madelyn and Jennifer up, hogtying them tightly just like they had done with Sharona. As Madelyn was flipped onto her stomach, she could feel her skirt flap up exposing her tights clad rear and the silky panties she wore underneath.

“Hey, watch it,” she shouted.

But the thugs paid her no mind. Instead, they continued their work making sure Madelyn and Jennifer were thoroughly trussed. By the time they were done, both girls had an impressive network of ropes keeping them bound. Madelyn took a look over at Jennifer who was hard at work, bouncing around and vigorously struggling as her skirt kept creeping further up her nyloned legs. Just like Kayla, she didn’t know when to quit.

“Alright you two, time to make sure you stay nice and quiet.”

Reaching for Madelyn’s pink cotton crew socks, the thugs peeled both of these from her feet so that she was left in just her nylons. Passing the socks between them, two of the thugs bore down on Madelyn and Jennifer with the socks in hands. Jennifer wiggled about, defiant as ever and determined not to just sit still and allow the creep to gag her with Madelyn’s socks.

“Let me fucking go right now. This is completely unacceptable. I am a reporter for the Hazeldale Tribune anmmmmmph mmrmmmnph!”

But despite her protests, Jennifer’s mouth was unceremoniously stuffed as the goon jammed Madelyn’s pink sock in pushing it past her lips.

“Mmmngph,” she tutted behind the pink cotton wad as the lower half of her face was encased with rounds and rounds of duct tape.

Madelyn wasn’t faring any better, her own mouth soon to be stuffed full of sock as the goon loomed overhead with her other sock in hand.

“Just get it over with,” Madelyn said with a sigh, resigning herself to the inevitable. She knew when to throw in the towel, and giving the copious amount of ropes keeping her bound she knew fighting back was a lost cause at this point.

With a wide grin, the thug balled up the sock and then jammed it straight into Madelyn’s mouth.

“Mmmmmrph,” she grunted as the sock was roughly squished into her mouth, pressing her tongue down and puffing out her cheeks. The thug followed up with just as much tape as was used on Jennifer, looping loads of it between Madelyn’s parted lips and sock stuffed mouth.

With their work finished, the men stepped back as the trio of bound and gagged gals wriggled on the floor below. Madelyn’s legs kicked and writhed in protest, the sheen of her black pantyhose stretching tightly around her thighs as she fought against the ropes. The fabric of her skirt had ridden up during her struggles, exposing more of the smooth, black material that covered her legs all the way up to her bottom. Her maroon sweater had rolled up slightly too, giving a peek at her taut, bare midriff.

Jennifer’s tights-covered legs twisted and turned as she tested the strength of her bonds, the sheer material glinting in the fluorescent lights of the room as she flopped around. Her feet wiggled as her toes flexed against the ends of her tights.

The thugs paid them no mind though, turning to each other as they discussed their plans.

“Great work, boys. Way to be efficient.”

“Yeah but, now what?”

“Now, we get the fuck out of here.”

Just then, one of the goons walkie-talkie crackled to life as a voice called out from out.

“This is squad a to squad b. Do you read me?”

The thug unlatched the radio and then brought it up to his mouth.

“Yeah, loud and clear. What’s up?”

“We’ve got a bit of a situation here…It’s all handled, don’t worry, but uh, there’s a couple snoops that are onto us.”

“Mrmmmph mmmph!” Madelyn muffled through her gag, her eyes wide with realization. They had to be talking about Kayla and Andrea! She looked over at Jennifer who had the same look on her face.

“A couple of snoops? Seriously? Fuck, we just tied up a few ourselves.”

“Shit, let’s hope that’s the last of them.”

“Hopefully, yeah. Well look, let’s not just stand around and gab like idiots. You remember where we agreed to meet?”

“Obviously. We’ll see you there. The quicker we get out of here the better.”

“Agreed, over and out.”

The voice from the walkie-talkie cut out, leaving a heavy silence in the room. Madelyn and Jennifer exchanged nervous glances. Things were starting to get out of hand. It wasn’t just them that had been nabbed, it was all four of them now. The thugs didn’t waste any more time, quickly grabbing their stuff and heading for the door with haste.