Sisters 6

»If things are going on like that, Belle owes me more than just a pair of her unspeakables!«

Whilst waiting for his plane, Mike had done as much research about Linh`s premature demise as he could do with just his cell phone on him. He had even paid to get access to all articles of three local newspapers to read every bit of information and yet, he felt as if he held very few parts of a very large puzzle.

When he left Grenoble airport at late afternoon, all Mike knew was in which hospital Linh had supposedly died and that there had been no further investigation if the cause of her death had been unnatural.

»Maybe, it`s just that simple! Sometimes, even young people who look perfectly fine catch an illness and die!«

However, Mike wanted to be sure. He didn`t feel guilty if Linh really had died, but the Police had arrested her after he had overpowered her and left her naked, bound and gagged for the SWAT team to find. And now, a few weeks later, she was dead and so, he wanted to know more about the villainous Vietnamese.

The Hertz car was at the promised spot and when he opened the glove compartment, he found that his friend had done the favor he had asked him for: Mike checked the revolver and put it into the holster under his jacket. Then, he drove off to the modern building that was simply called »Hôpital Nouveau«.

Had his life been a James Bond movie, Mike would have met a pretty nurse who had just ended her shift and could spill all the beans to him whilst he could also enjoy the pleasures of flesh with her. However, not even during his active days the work of a Secret Agent had been so glamorous and Mike doubted that they had ever been in reality.

At least, there were signs that told visitor where to go on the hospital ground. Mike knew that he had two options: either the intensive care unit or the morgue. Mike chose the latter and followed the signs that looked a bit more coyly than the others.

As in most hospitals, the pathology was located in the ground floor and near an iron door, he found what he had been looking for: two men in orderly clothes that stood by an ashtray and had a cigarette. Mike strolled closer and asked if one of them had a light for him.

»This is no visitor`s area!«, one of the men grunted and Mike drew a fake business card.

»Etienne Duvall, L`Observeur! Maybe, you have answers to some of my questions!«

The business card, he had designed by himself and let out of a printer at Heathrow. However, this wasn`t a restricted area. If someone found out that he had only pretended to be a news reporter, they would just send him away and even if they called the Police, faking a business card would not be considered more than a minor misdemeanor.

The grumpy man ostentatiously put out his cigarette and left, but the other one at least held his lighter to Mike`s. In the local idiom, he explained:

»A few days ago, some of your colleagues quite got on our nerves!«

Mike knew that some reporters had sensed a scandal regarding Linh`s death and he remembered the name of one of the reporters:

»I guess it was that Sardy-bitch!« Scoffing, he added:

»She always walks around as if she forgot to pull out her vibrator!«

Mike had hit the right nerve. The orderly chuckled and replied:

»Rather her butt plug!«

The two men inhaled and in his mind, Mike apologized to Nicolette Sardy of whom he had only seen a photo. Then, he said:

»Actually, I am working on a longer report about gallows’ humor. It will be about the dark jokes that help people who have to deal with the dead to get over the day.«

It was easy for Mike to improvise here: one of his parents` neighbors, Mr. Burgess, was a gravedigger and when Mike had been a child, he had listened to his stories with morbid fascination. Stories that often were hilariously funny.

The orderly now grinned and said:

»Well, I sure know some of such stories, but my break ends in 40 minutes and I am very tired.«

Mike got the message and once the man was 100 € richer, he became quite talkative. Whilst he was taking notes, Mike tried to railroad the conversation towards what the man knew about Linh and when the orderly`s break ended, he knew at least some more than before:

As usual, Linh`s dead body had been brought to the morgue after she had been declared dead. She had been stored in one of the cooling boxes and later, she had been transported away by a hearse. At least, the orderly had known the name of the undertaker.

On the way to his car, Mike smoked his fourth cigarette of the day (he usually tried to reduce it to one or two) and made a list of how many people would have been involved if Linh`s death had been a fake:

First, someone who had smuggled some poison into the prison to enable her to fake being severely ill. Then, a doctor who declared her dead and maybe even another one who feigned the autopsy. Finally, the undertaker who would take care that the coffin with Linh in it would not end up at a graveyard or in a crematory before the inmate had left.

»Now, that leaves me with three possibilities: first, I am hunting after a chimera and Linh is just dead as everyone says. Second, she has quite influential friends. Third, she has equally influential enemies who think that she deserves more punishment than just two years in prison.«

Since it had become evening and he would not be able to spend a visit to the undertaker before the next morning, Mike checked in at a small hotel. Before he went to bed, he sent a short message to Isabelle:

»Following an interesting lead. Enjoy Malta, I recommend Ghajn Tuffieha!«

***

Though the trip hadn`t lasted that long, Michiko was about to faint and was only dimly aware that the car had stopped. She then felt that the suitcase was carried over a short distance before it was dumped. A few seconds later, the lid was opened.

»Welcome to our new home, Michiko-san!«

The girl blinked and found it hard to even raise her head towards the direction of Hitoshi who looked down on her body, now clad with sweat. He chuckled under his mask.

»With all due respect, you do not smell like a rose anymore, Michiko-san!«

»Mmhhmmm!«

He made her sit up inside the suitcase and then loosened the ropes connecting her neck to her knees. Michiko stretched her legs the little she could and groaned. Still, she needed all her strength not to collapse. Hitoshi now pulled the hood from her head. Then, he untied the damp cloth that covered her mouth and nose, allowing her to breathe freely through her nose. Michiko panted and looked at her new prison.

To her surprise, it wasn`t another abandoned house or a barn, but it looked like a typical modern living room, comparable to her own, though it was furnished much more Spartan and somehow gave the impression that it was inhabited by a man. Hitoshi was standing close and she noticed that he had taken off his shirt, revealing the colorful tattoos on his upper body and also some scars.

»As promised, you will now be washed. However, there is no shower in this bathroom and so, it will be a bath.«

Michiko felt too exhausted to do anything as he now untied her. In her current state, even the idea of getting washed sounded promising, even though it meant he would touch her even more.

Hitoshi even undid her gag and gave her some water, taking care she only took small sips. Then, he cradled the still groggy girl in his arms, carried her over to the bathroom and lowered her into a bathtub. Then, he looked down on her.

»Take off your panties and give them to me!«

Michiko gasped. Her panties, though now completely trenched in her sweat, were the last barrier towards complete nudity. She collected her strength to raise her head and breathed:

»Must I really, Hitoshi-san?«

The masked man nodded and I a friendly tone, he answered:

»If you don`t want me to do it – yes!«

For a terrible second, Michiko had the idea of resisting and to have him bent over her, peeling down her panties. Then, slowly, she reached to her sides and hooked her thumbs into the waistband. As she pulled them down her legs, she felt the chilly porcelain on her buttocks and she blushed as he did not take his eyes from her.

When she reached up the damp garment to him, he put it into his pocket. Then, he took a pair of handcuffs and tied her ankles with them. Michiko shuddered. Not only would these prevent her from kicking or running away, they also indicated that he did not intend to give her her underwear back in the near future.

Hitoshi now turned on the tap and Michiko gasped as the cold water hit her body. He slightly regulated the temperature and used a toothbrush glass to pour water all over her. Though it was a bit chilly, the water also felt revitalizing and despite the man looking at her nude body, Michiko enjoyed it as the sweat was washed from her body. Then, Hitoshi bent deeper over the bathtub. She let out a sound of protest, but he just pushed the plug into the drain and then, he changed the water from lukewarm to hot. He then poured some bathing gel into the tub and handed her a washcloth.

He sat on the edge of the tub and watched as Michiko washed herself and again, there was the little treacherous voice deep inside her, saying:

»If you refuse washing yourself, he will do it!«

Michiko lowered her head and when the tub had filled and she was also covered by foam, she also washed her more intimate parts. Hitoshi changed his position and sat beside her head. Then, he put his hands on her shoulders.

»Just relax, Michiko-san.«

The girl stiffened as he started to massage her shoulders, but she didn`t dare to fight him off. After a while, she felt that this wasn`t bad at all. Her shoulders still ached from the rigid elbow tie and his hands were strong and yet sensitive. So, after a while, Michiko sank back and relaxed, even closing her eyes.

Hitoshi looked down on her as his hands continued to knead her shoulders. The foam had decreased and now, her breasts were protruding from the water. He could see that her nipples were hard, though the air in the bathroom wasn`t cold, and her chest was heaving as she was enjoying the massage. Under his mask, a bitter smile built upon Hitoshi`s lips.

»You are a beauty, Michiko! I really hope that your father will do as he is told by my superiors!«, he thought by himself.

***

Isabelle smiled as she looked at the display of her cell phone. Though she was tired, she couldn`t find sleep on the narrow couch she was lying upon.

After having worked out several plans, Akiko had used her sister`s credit card to order some pizzas and they had had an improvised meal at the flat, since they had decided it would be better to stay together. They had shared a bottle of wine, but none of them had been in the mood to drink too much and finally, they all had retired early.

Samantha was sleeping in Akiko`s room. The Japanese had a broad bed and obviously, none of the girls seemed to have issues with their sleeping arrangement. Cordelia had been given Michiko`s bed, though she had insisted on leaving it to Isabelle. However, the redhead had made clear that she would take the couch.

Said couch had been pulled into the corridor and currently blocked the flat`s door. In addition, Isabelle had the gun lying beside her and of course, the phone was in reach, too. Like that, they were sure that they would be awake if anyone would try to break in and could alert the Police before something happened.

»I recommend Ghajn Tuffieha!«

»Yeah, I am sure you would!«, Isabelle thought as she oppressed the urge to phone Mike or at least to text him back. She could not help admiring him for concluding she was at Malta, just from the single picture she had sent him. In addition, he obviously really was investigating Linh`s death. And obviously, he still thought of her as a woman.

Ghajn Tuffieha was one of Malta`s several beaches and it didn`t differ much from the other beaches the island offered its visitors. Except for one thing: it was the only beach where the Maltese, who were even more catholic than the Pope himself, tolerated topless sunbathing.

Actually, it had been one of the ideas Akiko had had, too. She had said that not only would she attract the kidnappers more easily if she was in plain sight, but they would also be confused by her going to the beach whilst her sister had been abducted.

Both Cordelia and Isabelle had not been fond of the idea, but now, she thought different. Perhaps, it was an omen that Mike had recommended that beach, too. Besides, removing her top wasn`t mandatory.

»Two days ago, I was anticipating a day at the beach. I really have to learn to articulate my wishes more clearly!«, she thought and then turned around to find a better sleeping position.

***

Another person that couldn`t find sleep, despite her exhaustion, was Michiko. After the bath, Hitoshi had toweled her and then given her a few minutes in privacy to follow nature. This bathroom had a small window, but it was too small for her to pass through and Michiko had no idea on which floor they were. And if she had screamed, Hitoshi would have entered the room and stopped her immediately.

So, when he had called for her, she had left the bathroom, wrapped in a large towel and making small steps due to her ankle cuffs. The supper had consisted of some sandwiches and water, but at least, he had allowed her to keep the towel around her body and she also was no further restrained. Only when they had heard the sound of a key in the door, he had pulled a sleeping mask over her eyes.

The following short conversation in Japanese had told Michiko that his accomplice had returned, but again, they took care she couldn`t understand anything. Then she felt Hitoshi`s hand grab her arm.

»My – colleague will sleep in the living room and we have no guest room. So, if you don`t insist on sleeping on the couch as well, you have to come with me!«

Michiko trembled, but she allowed him to lead her to the sleeping room. Not taking her blindfold off or freeing her ankles, he instead cuffed her wrists behind her back. Then, she felt him push something against her lips it tasted vile and when she pushed against it with her tongue, she tasted rubber.

The ball was pushed into her oral cavity. Attached to it was a leather mask formed like a bra`s cup that covered her mouth and chin. Hitoshi buckled the gag at her nape. Then, with one tug, he pulled the towel from her, rendering her naked.

Michiko panted as for some silent moments, he obviously was just watching her. She could hear his steps on the carpeted floor as he rounded her and she blushed, though he didn`t make any comments and also didn`t touch her.

She then heard some rustling, indicating that Hitoshi took off his clothes. Michiko gulped and when he again grabbed her arm, she stiffened and shook her head no.

SMACK!

The blow hit her butt without warning and though Hitoshi had just used his open hand, it made her jump forward and squeal through her gag. Another hit followed and she stumbled forward, landing on the bed.

»Lie down!«

Michiko trembled with fear, but she obeyed since being defiant would only make him punish her even more – and then do whatever he intended anyway!

There was another rustling and then, she felt him grab her hair, firmly but not brutally.

»Uuhhmmph! Nnnggg!«

To her surprise, he pushed a pillow under her head. Then, a light blanket was pulled over her, covering her nude forms. She felt the man get into the bed, too, but he didn`t touch her, except for brushing over her cheek.

»Sleep well, Michiko-san!«

Through the thin linen of the blanket, Michiko felt his body. She could smell his scent and heard his breathing. Her heart pounded, but slowly, she relaxed a bit. He had not touched her – well, except for the spanking, but things could have gotten much worse. And again, there had been this strange kind of gentleness. It was not only the pillow. The room was considerably warm and therefore, she wouldn`t have needed a blanket. But now, she was covered, though she still was stark naked.

Time passed and Michiko could hear how his breathing became that of a sleeping man. She thought if she should try to escape. It would be easy to get her hands to her front and to remove her blindfold; maybe, even her gag. Perhaps, she would even be able to leave the bed and to sneak for the door without waking up Hitoshi. But then? In the adjacent room, the other man was sleeping and even if she would have reached the corridor, she had heard how Hitoshi had locked the door and surely, the key was in his pocket.

Then, there were her fears about what would happen if they recognized her escape attempt. Despite his friendly cravings, she knew that Hitoshi didn`t shy away from violence and he would sure take care that she didn`t try it a second time.

»I will wait for a better opportunity! Or if things become really intolerable!«

Obviously, her assessments of what was tolerable had changed over the past 30 hours.

***

With considerable pride, Marc always spoke of himself as a »professional criminal«. After all, he could afford a good living standard thanks to his illegal activities and though the majority of his business was petty crime, he also had done things that required more than just the wish to avoid taxes. He had repeatedly used his gun (though never fired it) to reach his goals and usually, people feared him. Now, however, he was the one to be afraid.

Not only had working with the Yakuza turned out to be a size too big, but now, he had to contact one of the few Maltese he actually feared.

Accompanied by Aaron and Hank as his entourage, he visited a man that was known under the rather unspectacular name »Caine«. Caine was a man in his 40ies who was tall and slim, though athletic and who was surrounded by rumors. Some said that he had served as a mercenary in Africa, making a fortune with diamonds whilst others were convinced that he was a former OSS member that had turned to the Dark Side.

The real reason Marc hated and feared Caine was that this man had the aura he would have loved to have. He felt it when they now shook hands in the back room of a bar at Gozo, the neighboring island of Malta. However, Marc was the one who had an offer to make:

»Are you interested in a job, Caine? A real job, I mean?«

If Caine had made a fortune, he hid it well. He owned a small house where he lived alone, owned a ten year old Volkswagen and his boat was an open vessel that measured some 15 feet. He officially was a »freelance writer«, though nobody had ever read anything written by him. It was just the cover that explained why he could afford a living without working. However, Marc knew that Caine wasn`t in for the money, but for the thrill of committing an »interesting« crime whilst the money was only bycatch, so to say.

»Tell me more!«

Marc told the man what had happened so far, trying to play down the fact that his men had failed. Caine took a sip from his beer and said:

»The Yakuza, hm? And you are sure that the remaining girl has not yet informed the Police?«

»My informants say so.«

Marc had a few low ranking Policemen on his payroll that told him about any current investigation. And so far, no case of abduction had been reported.

»Currently, she is in her sister`s flat, together with some friends. One of my men observes the place, but it seems that they are not intending to leave the house before dawn.«

Caine wanted more information and Marc handed him an envelope that contained a photo of Akiko, Michiko`s address and the sum that he was willing to pay. The man looked at the picture and grinned wolfishly.

»It`s been a long time since I have done something entertaining. Call me in!«

Marc smiled a bit insecurely. He had noticed that Caine hadn`t haggled about his share of the money and the look on his face had told him one thing for sure:

If Akiko fell into Caine`s clutches, she would regret having forced Marc to bring that man into the game!

***

Malta is said to have 365 churches, one for each day of the year. So, there is hardly a place on the island where you can`t hear the sound of church bells during the night. Michiko counted the strokes that sounded through the open window and knew that it was 4 am. She had dozed off, but now, she was awake, only too aware of the man sleeping next to her.

She was still naked, bound and gagged but during her hours of sleeping, the sleeping mask had slipped a bit and in the pale moonlight coming in through the window, she could see a glimpse of Hitoshi. The man had turned towards the wall and so, she couldn`t see his face, but only the dragon tattoo on his back. Then, Hitoshi suddenly moved.

Quickly, Michiko turned her head towards the window so he wouldn`t see her blindfold had slipped. However, it seemed that he still was sleeping – but then, she felt his hand on her belly. The blanket had been crumpled during the night and now, she was bare from the waist upwards. Michiko stiffened and didn`t dare to breathe. The man`s hand unruly brushed over her ribs and belly and she had to bite down on her gag not to scream. Then, she felt him touch her breast.

»Oh my God, what is he doing, I can`t shake him off or he will wake up!«

For a moment, she feared that he was awake already and was trying to have his way with her, but then, she heard a faint snore and his hand just rested on her left breast. Michiko lay like petrified. Her heart bumped so hard she feared that Hitoshi would feel it even in his sleep. However, she had no other chance than to endure it.

Slowly, she turned her head to have a look at the man whose face was now so close to her shoulder she could feel his breath on her skin. It was the face of a man of some 30 years, neither handsome nor ugly and looking peaceful in his sleep. In addition, it was a face she had never seen before.

Michiko heard a sound from the adjacent room. Obviously, the other man had gotten up to attend the bathroom. It seemed that he had also been sleeping with his window open, for him opening the bathroom door caused some draught and the door of the sleeping room opened a bit and light fell onto the bed. As Michiko heard the toilet flush and then saw the man return, her first reaction was to feel embarrassed for if he looked into the bedroom, he would see her naked with his accomplice`s hand on her breast. But then, the girl petrified and gasped, needing all her self-control not to scream through her gag.

She knew this man! Michiko had forgotten his name for they had only met once or twice, but he was one of the junior executives at her father`s company at Kyoto!

***

His old neighbor Mr. Burgess had not only told young Mike about the funny sides of his jobs, but also about other details and curiosities related to the business of burying dead people. So, Mike knew what happened to dead bodies after they had entered the undertaker`s rooms.

Usually, the dead person`s family decided what had to be done. As long as they paid and did not break any laws or offend against good manners, the undertaker would do everything they demanded. However, if they could not pay or no family could be determined, the state took care of a simple, but decent funeral.

According to the newspaper articles, Linh had died five days ago. Mike was sure that if the criminal had had a family, they most likely lived in Vietnam. In addition, they perhaps hadn`t even heard of their daughter`s demise yet. So, Mike was quite sure that Linh`s dead body – if there was one – still was in a cooling box in the undertaker`s cellar.

»Four or five days in the fridge – if she wasn`t dead by arrival, she sure is now!«

He got up early and took his time to give himself a serious, almost solemn appearance. He put on a dark gray suit, fake glasses with metal frames and took a briefcase that contained nothing but two empty file folders and a few pens. His new identity was that of an insurance clerk that was managing the estate of the late Miss Nguyen and therefore had the sad duty to have a look at her dead body.

He arrived at the undertaker five minutes before the office opened and was surprised to see another person waiting already. It was a man of his age and he looked South Asian. Mike nodded towards the man and whilst the minutes passed, he mustered him. Like most Asians, he didn`t show his feelings, but he sure wasn`t as quiet as he pretended to be.

»Maybe, he is just overwhelmed by having to organize a funeral.«, Mike thought, but when the office opened, her tried to stay so close that he could overhear what the man had to say.

»My name is Vinh Phong! I am here to organize the transfer of the mortal remains of my late sister in law, Linh Nguyen!«

The man had a strong accent, but Mike could clearly understand him and wasn`t sure if this was a lucky or a bad coincidence. This man`s appearance made his own cover obsolete as Vinh Phong sure would have some questions Mike had no answer to. On the other hand, if he followed the man, he would know more, for he sure wanted to have a last look on his sister in law, too.

»Monsieur, may I help you?«

It was one of the undertaker`s employees and Mike, who could hardly tell that he just was having a look at the new coffins, improvised a story about him having to organize the funeral of his late grandaunt. He pretended that since it would be a bigger event, he had to compare prices and the employee handed him a few brochures. Unfortunately, he had to follow him to his office and so, he could only see that the Vietnamese left after a short discussion with the woman at the desk. When Mike left the building, Vinh Phong had gone.

However, when he thought about the situation, he came to the conclusion that he hadn`t lost much: no matter if the man was her real brother in law or an accomplice, he could not just walk away with the coffin over his shoulder. So, if Linh was dead, her body was still at the undertaker.

»Breaking into a morgue, that`s a new one! Well, let`s start ›Operation Frankenstein‹!«

***

Cordelia looked at herself in the navy blue one piece swimsuit. She had to admit that Akiko`s compliment on her legs had flattered her and with a smile, she thought that at the beach, even her modesty would allow her to wear no skirt at all.

Of course, this didn`t apply to the hotel lobby, but after they had started their trip to Ghajn Tuffieha, they had first stopped at Isabelle`s and Samantha`s and then at her hotel. Since at the beach, there would be a warped changing cubicle at best, all four had decided to put their swimsuits under their clothes before getting there. So, Cordelia slipped into her sandals and then put on a dark red wrap skirt and a white, short-sleeved shirt. She then picked her raffia bag with her belongings, put on her broad-brimmed straw hat and left the room.

As on the way in, she nervously looked around if perhaps Linh (or not Linh) would appear somewhere at the lobby or in the corridor. After all, she perhaps didn`t know yet that they had escaped and therefore would have felt save. But the only Asian she saw was a woman in her 70ies walking with a stick and so, she made her way to the waiting car. She had to squeeze herself on the backseat, beside Isabelle; Samantha insisted on driving and Akiko had pretended that potential kidnapping victims deserved to sit on the front seats. Still, the Japanese behaved as if this was a great adventure trip rather than a potential confrontation with real criminals.

»All right!«, Akiko yelled, »let`s go and lure some criminal bastards into our trap! Killer Crêpe and Flashy Boobs to the rescue!«

The latter nickname caused Samantha to hit Akiko`s thigh, but she had to giggle as well. Isabelle exchanged a worried smile with Cordelia. Then, she asked Akiko:

»Which nickname do you propose for us – Killer Crêpe?«

»How about ›Dr. Lovely Legs‹ and ›The Cool Chaperone‹?«, Akiko suggested without hesitating and now, Cordelia and Isabelle had to laugh, too.

None of them noticed the young man on his scooter who followed them at some distance and, breaking the law, used his cell phone the same time.

***