The Little Death 7

»Target has reached home, but she`s accompanied only by one of the Policewomen!«

Ingrid pondered for a few seconds before she answered:

»Okay, we will make a slight change in our plan. Listen-«

She told Bao what she intended and the man nodded, since it sounded reasonable to him. Kang and Feng were on their way and as soon as they could be sure not to be seen, they would hit their target.

***

»This! Can`t! Be! True!«

Isabelle stared at her desktop. Once she had reached her flat, it had suddenly come to her mind that she had forgotten to ask Lioba for her address and neither did she have Sistine`s number. Since it would have been a bit embarrassing to call the Department, Isabelle, had googled for Dr. Lioba Karnstein and had luckily found her current address in the telephone book. Relieved, she had wanted to close the computer when she typed »Lioba+Karnstein+Sheffield«.

»It`s idiotic! Just because she went to school there, she sure hasn`t been in the same school as Mike! After all, she`s one year younger and-«

Her search got several hits and there was even a picture of a much younger Lioba, wearing a black dress and smiling a bit strained whilst standing beside an elderly man. Isabelle clicked on the article. It was from the site of the Hillsborough Public School and dated from 2009. She quickly calculated that Lioba had been about 17 by then. The article was short; the man on the photo was obviously the principal and he expressed his pride about Lioba having won a price in a chemistry competition that »has once again proven we can expect great things from one of our most promising pupils«.

So, Lioba had been »promising«, maybe valedictorian. Isabelle had no real idea why she scoffed; after all, she had also been good at school. However, though she had never asked Mike about his old school, she knew that he was a fan of Sheffield Wednesday – who had their stadium at Hillsborough.

»So, maybe, she has been at the same school! So what?«

However, she clicked through the other photos from the years 2009 and 2010. There were a few more pictures showing Lioba, even a second one on which she was sporting a fancy dress and had her hair in an updo. Obviously, it had been her graduation party. The next picture showed a group of young people, the boys in smokings or other suits and the girls wearing their finest dresses. It reminded Isabelle of her own graduation party, but then, the smile on her lips froze.

The guy who had put his arm around Lioba had longer hair than he had now and when she enlarged the photo, Isabelle could also see a pimple on his forehead, but this definitely was Mike! Her Mike, posing with another girl!

Isabelle jumped up from her seat and forced herself to calm down.

»So, they were friends back then! Maybe, they even were together! Nothing to worry about!«

Of course, Mike had had a life before they had met. Hell, even she had an amorous past, though she was eight years younger and even her own mother had once called her prudish – though only in comparison to Samantha.

But she felt a sting of jealousy when she returned to the computer and once again examined the photo. Almost involuntarily, she compared herself to the other woman whose recent self she would meet in a few hours.

Lioba was taller than her – since she was wearing high heels with her dress, she was even taller than Mike, but he didn`t seem to bother.

»So, he has a crush on redheads!«

She remembered some of Mike`s compliments referring to her hair and asked herself whether he had used them on Lioba, too. Her eyes were blue, in contrast to Isabelle`s green ones, and, she noticed with a bitter laugh when she reminded how Mike had always teased her about hers, she sported a few freckles.

»So, am I just his loot scheme or is he trying to replace his lost first love?«

Isabelle knew that she was pathetic and she closed the photo. She wanted to leave the school`s site when her eyes fell upon another folder: »Alumni Reunion 2023«.

The actual date had just been a few weeks ago and Isabelle clicked on it. A few lines informed her that the principal was happy that the end of COVID allowed a big party; then, the photos followed, showing that the party had been rather informal, with lots of people from their late twenties to their late fifties having a good time. Then, she found what she subconsciously had been looking for:

Mike was half sitting, half lying on a couch, wearing a white shirt and a loosened bow tie. A woman was literally draped over him, her arms around his neck. They were both grinning into the camera and looked as if they had had more than just one glass. However, Isabelle knew that the unnatural red on Mike`s mouth wasn`t red wine, but lipstick. Lioba`s lipstick that looked a bit smeared as she was looking directly at Isabelle.

She slammed down the laptop and panted.

»So, it hasn`t taken this bastard very long to forget me!«

***

At Harvard University, Luana and Sophia had been something between colleagues and friends: they had occasionally gone out together, but hadn`t shared many personal information. Nevertheless, they had gotten on well with each other.

Now, however, this seemed to have changed and if one of them hadn`t been gagged, there would have been a few harsh words to be heard. Sophia still was coping with what (as she thought) Luana had done to her the day before.

»They may have forced you, but that was just-«

The mere memory of what the Chinese had done to her with her hands and mouth made Sophia blush. In addition, she was starting to suffer physically, too. After some hours, her legs ached and she had already sank down on the horizontal stick a few times, though she had raised after a few seconds each time she had done so. The vibrations increased the more weight she put on it and Sophia didn`t want to risk the effects this might have on her.

Opposite to her, right behind Luana, was a mirror and Sophia looked at herself. The contrast of her nude body, slightly glistering from perspiration, and her glasses, like she had come directly from a porn movie featuring naughty teachers or stuff like that. Involuntarily, she had to think of her last boyfriend; he had sometimes insisted that she left on her glasses. Sophia groaned and shook out first one, then the other leg, forcing herself to remain upright.

Luana glanced at her. Her feelings towards Sophia had undergone some rapid changes during the last few hours, since Ingrid and Lan had left them. First, she had felt pity for her co-captive, combined with the urge to explain to her that it had been Lan who had touched her. However, as time had passed, other, less friendly feelings had grown within her.

Like most East Asians, Luana had been taught to be tough and to hide her feelings since she was a toddler and thus, she felt contempt for anyone who, in her eyes, let herself go. So far, Luana had managed to remain standing without a sound and without having to lower to the stick between her legs and thus, whenever her co-captive shifted her position or moaned, Luana felt her growing contempt.

»After all, it`s worse for me than for her!«

After all, she had been forced to balance on one leg for endless minutes whilst Sophia had been allowed to rest on her back. And now, she has to endure that damn rope between her legs. Luana slightly wriggled her hips. The crotch rope wasn`t nearly as tight and brutal than the one she had had to endure the previous night, but it was there and it felt very irritating and the urge to move her pelvis grew and grew.

Then, there was her gag. Sophia had to chew on a rubber ball which was unpleasant, but she had Ingrid`s panties in her mouth – a tiny thong, but it tasted vile and she knew all too well how the blonde German had reached under her skirt and-

Luana oppressed the urge to shudder. It wasn`t just a matter of pride, but also the same reason she hadn`t sat down on the stick so far: if she moved too much, the bells clipped to her nipples would jingle and then, maybe, Greg would hear it and come in.

»Well, perhaps, he wouldn`t even notice me!«

Luana could have explained why she felt contempt for Sophia and at least to herself, she perhaps would have admitted that some of it actually was contempt for herself: because she had also been weak and had responded to Lan`s teasing. However, what really surprised her was that she also felt some envy.

Not that Luana envied Sophia for also being a captive, but in her eyes, both Ingrid and Lan treated her more friendly than her and it seemed that they always had some little extra torture for her in their sleeves.

This was the situation when the door went open and Ingrid stepped in, followed by both Lan and Greg.

»Soon, we will have a new guest. I want her to feel at home and so, we need to do some preparation!«

***

»Sorry, I didn`t expect any guests today!«

Lioba`s flat was indeed a little messy, but Sistine was more impressed by the fact that the house had a real concierge and one of these old elevators that looked like cages. The furniture in the rather small apartment, however, was quite modern.

»It`s not big, but sufficient for one person«, Lioba said and Sistine thought that she had heard some sadness in the other woman`s voice.

Lioba pointed to a small desk in a corner of the living room.

»I don`t have enough room for a private office, but the experiments and tests are done in the lab anyway. May I offer you something?«

And so, they both had a large mug with Latte Macchiato when placing two chairs at the desk. Before Lioba started the laptop, she said:

»Too bad your colleague isn`t here yet, but I think I owe you an explanation. I mean, Leduc will kill me, but if there really is a crime going on, the Police has to know what this is all about.«

And so, she tried to summarize »Project Little Death« in a way understandable for someone who was not familiar with chemical formula. Sistine`s eyes grew bigger.

»An aphrodisiac? You mean, like Viagra for women?«

»Not exactly. Viagra helps to compensate physical disabilities. LD is more, like you young people say, something that gets you horny as fuck!«

Sistine giggled, either from Lioba`s attempt to speak like a teenager or from the abrupt change of language level. Then, she asked with a slightly hoarse voice:

»And – does it work?«

Now, Lioba had to oppress a giggle. This was less the Policewoman doing an investigation and more like a locker room talk. She smiled and answered:

»The product wasn`t yet ready for extensive – field studies.«

She further explained that one of the problems was to find a way to stimulate specific areas of the brain without disabling the will-power completely and also to avoid addiction, but she noticed that Sistine was obviously imagining what »extensive field studies« meant in a case like that. She plugged in the hard disk.

»Now, let`s see what Sophia did last Friday!«

She quickly checked the folders, seeing that Sophia had only added a little new data since the last time. It was the results of a few test they had already started, but then had decided to wait for Professor Leduc to continue, since he kept some of the information they would need under lock.

»Leduc wants to make sure that he gets all the merits! Anyway, the basic idea is to combine the effects of two active substances: one that causes a general relaxation and another that raises the sensitivity down there.«

»So-«, Sistine croaked and then cleared her throat, angry at herself for behaving so unprofessional. Lioba smiled.

»So, even an underwhelming performer could get you over the brink. However, if the dose is so high that this effect is guaranteed, the hysterical paroxysm caused by an experienced lover could be just too heavy!«

Obviously, she waited for Sistine to ask the meaning of the technical term, but instead, the young Policewoman just got up.

»Excuse me, where`s your bathroom?«

»Exciting matter, isn`t it?«, Lioba asked with a grin and as soon as Sistine got the joke, she blushed.

»I just have to go!«

»Over there«, Lioba answered, showing her the bathroom door. When she went there, Sistine could hear the doctor giggle.

Sistine sat down on the toilet and indeed paid tribute to the coffee, but at the same time, she took her phone and googled »hysterical paroxysm«. The very first entry already answered her question: the term derived from the time when doctors and psychiatrists had believed that nearly all female problems and illnesses had their origin in the uterus, or hystera. Thus, the term »hysteria« described literally all kinds of psychological problems a woman could have.

»Many men still think so!«, Sistine thought.

In the 19th century, many psychiatrists had tried to cure such »hysterias« by causing the hysterical paroxysm. A paroxysm originally described the outburst of a volcano; in other words, the doctors tried to cause their female patients to orgasm.

»And I felt uneasy when Dr. Planard just put his hand on my knee!«

Sistine felt equally repelled and fascinated by the idea of getting an orgasm on recipe, so to say. Then, she heard a knock at the door.

»One moment!«

Sistine realized that she was occupying the bathroom for some minutes now and perhaps, Lioba was worried or had to go herself. She wanted to get up when the door suddenly swung open. Sistine`s protest died on her lips when she saw that not Lioba had entered, but a man. An Asian man, and he was pointing a gun at her.

»Please, finish whatever you have to finish, but then, get out of that room. You will be going on an interesting journey and before, we have to take care of both you and Dr. Karnstein.«

***

Isabelle`s first impulse had been to phone Mike and to tell him he should visit Dover Castle with his original love interest and not with the silly substitute. Then, her pride had kicked in and prevented her from doing so. She had forced down her tears and reminded herself that first of all, she was a professional Policewoman.

»Lioba`s maybe a bitch, but she`s also maybe a witness of a crime!«

However, this wouldn`t make it easier for her to look into the eyes of the woman that had kissed Mike. Her Mike! Of course, it was also possible that Mike just hadn`t told Lioba about her, but Isabelle couldn`t help feeling jealous.

She definitely didn`t want to see Lioba, but on the other hand, she had to pick up Sistine who perhaps had important information and also needed someone to give her a lift home. Sistine! Isabelle had begun to like the overly motivated girl and she just hoped that she would not see Isabelle`s emotional status when she would see her again.

»No! I can`t stand it! At least, not today!«

So, she picked up the phone, steeled herself for talking to Lioba and dialed the doctor`s number. To her relief, her call was answered by Lioba`s mail box.

»Sistine, it`s me, Isabelle! I am still not feeling well, so, please, take a taxi, I will give the money to you tomorrow. And, please, call me when you are home!«

She added her landline number and only when she had put down the handset, she realized that she had been quite impolite by not even saying a word towards Lioba, the owner of the phone.

»Well, I sure could call her again, say something like ›Sorry, Dr. Karnstein, I was just forgetting to say hello because I was upset about you banging my ex‹!«

It sounded ridiculous to her and Isabelle looked at the sideboard where the half-emptied bottle of Gin was standing. Isabelle had already put some ice cubes into a glass when she hesitated.

»Maybe, this is how people become alcoholics!«

She decided to phone Samantha. They hadn`t become reconciled since their last quarrel yet, but her younger sister could definitely not be called resentful and Isabelle was even ready to apologize. She decided that she would only drink if she didn`t feel better after she and Samantha had ranted about that unfaithful dick Mike that didn`t even deserve to lick her soles.

The phone rang the very moment Isabelle approached it and for a moment, she thought that it was Samantha, but then, she looked at the display.

»Unknown number«

Isabelle frowned. Her landline number wasn`t in the phonebook and she had given it only to her mother, Samantha, her superior – and Mike. But it was none of them and Isabelle took a deep breath.

»Please, don`t let it be Mike!«

It would have been better if it was Lioba. Isabelle waited for another ringing and then, she grabbed the handset.

»Isabelle?«

It was a female voice, but Isabelle`s relief was short-lived. If this was none of her friends, why was that stranger calling her by her first name?«

As if she had read her thoughts, the woman continued:

»Please, forgive me for just calling you by your first name, though we have never met before. But unfortunately, you only left that on the mail box. Anyway, I hope you can manage to get to Dr. Karnstein`s flat within the next few hours.«

Having said that, the woman ended the call.

***

The phone still in her hand, Ingrid smiled towards Lan. It was a prepaid phone and she would soon remove the battery pack and throw it away, in case this Isabelle would not follow her next orders.

»This observation device your men installed really works well!«

Lan shrugged.

»The result of decades of practical research!«

Ingrid closed the laptop and she and Lan went over to the room where Greg was waiting for them. Since Ingrid had wanted to put up a bit of a show for their latest guest and neither the lab nor the torture chamber offered enough room for that, she had decided to use one of the abandoned rooms. This one was empty except for the two surprises they had prepared earlier.

»They should be here any minute now!«

Greg just nodded and placed himself beside one of the »surprises« and crossed his arms. On Ingrid`s order, he had put on all black and his gun he had shoved into his belt was clearly visible. She herself was dressed in a bright red mini dress and a fresh white lab coat whilst Lan had decided for another of her uniforms, complete with the cap and the insignia of her rank. With a smirk, Ingrid noticed the riding crop in the Chinese`s hands.

A strange sound could be heard from the corridor, accompanied by the sound of steps. As the door opened, it turned out to be the sound of plastic wheels on a concrete floor, as Kang and Feng pushed a big blue suitcase inside the room. They were followed by Bao who saluted towards Lan before he handed a bag to Ingrid.

»Dr. Karnstein`s laptop, together with an external hard disk that seems to belong to Dr. Chabrol. I took the liberty of destroying both the doctor`s and the Policewoman`s cell phones on my way here!«

»Thank you, Bao!«

Ingrid put the bag away and turned towards the suitcase. Lan told the three men in Chinese to retreat and as they had left, Ingrid unzipped the suitcase and opened the lid. Then, she stepped back and watched.

With a lot of grunting and aching, the girl who had been stowed inside the suitcase fought to get into an upright position. She had been tied simply, but effective, with her wrists and ankles tied by zip ties and a third one connecting these bonds, hogtying the girl. Like that, she had been forced into a ball position to fit into the suitcase and now, even getting into a sitting or rather kneeling position took quite some effort.

The girl`s head was covered by a black hood, but Ingrid was more occupied by her appearance further down. The girl`s trousers were pulled down and her panties were crumpled around her knees, exposing her middle. Ingrid giggled.

»My men already told me that they caught you in the most private of businesses – Sistine, isn`t it?«

»Mph!«

Ingrid pulled the hood from the girl`s head and Sistine stared at her with widened eyes. the lower half of her face was covered by some rounds of duct tape and the bulging of her cheeks told Ingrid that her mouth had been thoroughly stuffed before the tape had been applied.

After he had caught her with her pants literally down, the man had forced Sistine to get up and flush the toilet, but had forbidden her to pull up her panties or trousers. Exposed from the waist down, she had to stagger out of the bathroom, panting from fear and embarrassment.

Two more men had been waiting for her, also Asians. One of them was holding Lioba in a chokehold whilst pressing the barrel of his gun to her chin. Lioba`s blue eyes met Sistine´s but now, the third man stepped behind her and grabbed her arms.

With brutal efficiency, he zip-tied her wrists, ignoring her gasp. He then also tied her ankles and then grabbed her shoulders, forcing her to sit down on her heels so he could connect her wrist and ankle tie.

»Please, I am a Policewoman, I-«

»We know you are a Policewoman! In fact, it is one of the reasons you have to come with us!«

It was the man who had first caught her, coming back from the bathroom and handing something to his accomplice.

»I just hope that the good doctor hasn`t been wearing these pantyhose for more than a day!«, he said as the other man grabbed Sistine`s scalp and forced her to arch her head back. As she opened her mouth to protest, he quickly, but thoroughly stuffed her mouth with something soft, but slightly scratchy. Something that tasted vile.

»The pantyhose!«, the girl realized, but she had no chance in resisting to be gagged with the used garment. After the man had secured her gag with tape, she had been hooded and then, they had shoved her into the suitcase.

Sistine had tried to figure out where they had been taking her, but the trip had been just long and uncomfortable. She had screamed her lungs out and fought against her bonds, but both to no avail.

Now, her eyes fell upon the woman who had freed her from the hood. It was a tall blonde, wearing the rather strange combination of a lab coat and a mini dress. Beside her stood a smaller woman sporting a khaki uniform and in a corner, she saw a man leaning at the wall. He was tall, very muscular and had a gun protruding from his belt. Sistine noticed that he was staring at her exposed middle and she gulped.

For a moment, she thought that there were ghosts, too, but then, she realized that the blonde and the Asian were standing between two rather big things covered by large white sheets. These sheets were billowing slightly and she also had the impression of something – or rather someone – moving underneath.

»I hope your trip was pleasant, Sistine! If not, well, you may be interested in not getting even more uncomfortable!«

She reached over to the covered arrangement to her right and pulled of the sheet. Sistine mewed when her eyes fell on yet another Asian woman sitting on what looked like a headless rocking horse. The woman was stark naked, except for two straps that went over her shoulders, crossed between her breasts and then disappeared under her arms. Another strap went around her waist and from it, a third went over her pubic mound until it – disappeared. With a shudder, Sistine realized that all straps had been pulled very tight and the fact that the vertical strap was invisible obviously meant that it had been pulled – inside the woman!

The Asian also had a black leather mask tied over her mouth and her legs were tied ankle to thigh with two more straps, forcing her to sit astride the horse with folded legs. Sistine then saw more details of the woman`s predicament: she was sitting unnaturally upright, with her breasts thrusting out as if she was trying to push them against her. There were clamps on her nipples, with small bells dangling from them and whenever she moved slightly, Sistine could hear a faint jingle.

The most horrifying thing, however, were the two weights tied to the woman`s knees. This made sitting even more uncomfortable, as the horse`s body was little more than an oblong wooden beam and she was sitting on one of the edges, pressing down on it with the soft flesh between her legs. The Asian didn`t make a sound, but the strained expression in her eyes and the beads of perspiration on her naked skin told Sistine that she was suffering.

»She is sitting like that for some hour now – but, of course, it`s not on her to decide when her ordeal ends!«

Now, the uniformed woman came to action. She raised her riding crop and approached the naked woman. Instead of beating her, she poked her between her breasts, causing the torture horse to rock back and forth and causing additional pain and discomfort.

»In fact, her current situation may end very soon – if you prove to be cooperative, Sistine!«

She looked down on the bound and gagged Policewoman. Sistine`s head spun around, looking for an escape from this living nightmare, but there was nothing but her captors – and the suffering woman. So, with little other choice, she nodded slightly.

»Excellent! Greg!«

The blonde waved towards the man who approached Sistine. She could not help mew with alarm as he took out a switchblade knife, but he just cut her ties. Sistine rubbed her wrists, but when she wanted to reach for her gag, the blonde stopped her.

»We don`t need you talking right now, Sistine! Instead, I want you to strip!«

»Mhhmmph! Nnngg!«

Sistine vigorously shook her head and the blonde showed her a smile that sent a shiver down her spine.

»As you like it! However, do you think that Greg is strong?«

As on keyword, Greg stretched his arms, emphasizing his indeed impressive muscles. The blonde continued:

»If your clothes are not on a neat pile in front of you within the next 60 seconds, Greg will put his hands on Luana`s«, she pointed at the bound Asian, »shoulders and press her down on her seat. But once you are in your birthday suit, he will remove the weights and put her from the rocking horse. It`s on you, dear Sistine!«

Luana had managed to remain silent, but Sistine had seen the expression of fear in her eyes and so, she did as she was told. She kicked off her shoes and stepped out of her pulled down trousers. Resisting the urge to pull up her panties and put them off, too.

»Put these extra!«, the blonde ordered and Sistine obeyed. She then removed her sockets and, knowing that now, her T-Shirt would no longer cover her butt and pubic mound, she pulled the garment over her head. Then, she worked on the clasps of her bra and stood there, her cheeks burning from humiliation, as the bulky man indeed removed the weights from Luana`s knees and heaved her from the horse, placing her on the ground. Now, she could see that her arms were trapped inside a black leather sheath that went from her upper arms to the tip of her fingers and was so tight it pressed her elbows together.

The blonde now looked at Sistine who was trying to cover her buxom forms with her hands. Smiling, she ordered:

»No need to be shy, Sistine! Stand straight! Put your hands on your hips and then, get your elbows as close as you can!«

Sistine could only get one clear thought when she slowly lowered her arm that shielded her breasts:

»If I had spent the day at home and gone to work on Monday as I had intended, none of this would have happened!«

***