Ebony and Ivory 15

Telling Marcus to have an eye on Valentina, Yawo quickly went upstairs and carried down Louise, placing her beside her comrade. Then, he concluded:

»Okay, we haven’t looked under the beds and into the cupboards, but it seems that there is nobody left in the ground floor and above! So, they must be in the cellar, most likely behind that door!«

He and Marcus pulled the two girls into the corridor, allowing them to watch both the secret passage and the other end of the corridor. They had no idea how many thugs were in the cellar, or if there was a second exit. Yawo reached for his gym bag.

»After we had a shot and that shattered armour already, they know we are here. That means we don’t have to be too delicate!«

He produced a can, pulled a ring from it and threw it through the gap between the doorframe and the cupboard. There was a clinking as the can rolled down the stairs, followed by a hissing, and then, pink clouds of smoke came from the gap. Yawo put his sunglasses back on and covered his mouth and nose with his left arm whilst he waited if someone would appear, trying to avoid the fumes. Marcus occasionally coughed, and his eyes watered as the clouds wavered around him, but he escaped the smoke by standing up. The two girls squirmed on the floor, wheezing and coughing behind their gags, and Marcus hoped that they had earned to suffer like that.

»It’s a grenade for indoor combat, the smoke should clear within a few minutes!«, Yawo whispered, and indeed, the pink clouds grew paler soon. On the floor, Valentina and Louise, whose faces had turned violet, were panting and groaning, but it seemed that they had only suffered some temporary inconvenience.

»Okay, if they don’t have gas masks, I would say that we can get downstairs now! That is, one of us can do so!«

It was reasonable that one should guard the entry of the corridor, to avoid unpleasant surprises, and since he now knew how to handle the pump gun, Marcus could easily secure the narrow passage whilst Yawo carefully stepped downstairs. He didn’t like the idea that Silvana was down there and he was not the one in the first row to rescue her, but he had to accept that Yawo was the more experienced of them.

It were the longest two minutes in Marcus’ life until Yawo returned from the cellar. His expression showed neither relief nor that he had faced something disturbing.

»There’s just one door! Solid iron, and it is locked! I tried to listen, but all I could hear was the sound of bells! Don’t ask me, I am just reporting!«

He bent over Valentina, cupping her chin.

»Is there a second entrance?«

The exhausted girl, who had just managed to get back to normal breathing, hesitated for a few seconds before she nodded. When Yawo ordered her to tell her where it was, she just waited for him to remove her gag. She panted when the rag was pulled from her mouth; then, she said with a hoarse voice:

»Let us go, and we will tell you how to get inside unharmed!«

Marcus felt a mixture of anger and unwilling admiration: naked, hogtied and blindfolded, this woman still tried to negotiate! However, if it would save Silvana’s life, he could live with these two getting unpunished. So, he watched with disbelief as Yawo forced the gag back into Valentina’s mouth and secured it with some fresh tape.

»I can’t let them go! At least not before I know that what happens in this castle won’t affect my country’s interests!«

Marcus wanted to tell him where he could put his loyalty, and a devious voice inside him even wanted to suggest to torture the answers out of their prisoners, but Yawo now just put Valentina over  his shoulders, grabbed the gym bag and entered the passage.

»Get the blonde and follow me! Close the door behind you, there’s a mechanism, and we will have our backs covered!«

The staircase still smelled from the smoke grenade, and when he had closed the door, it was dark, but once he had placed Valentina on the floor, Yawo lit a flashlight, showing then the door that looked old, but nevertheless solid. Marcus pressed his ear to it, and indeed, there was a faint sound that had a similarity to bells.

Yawo meanwhile examined the small gap between the door and the frame. It was too narrow to see anything inside, but he could make out that there were two hinges. Marcus looked over his shoulder and asked:

»What now? C4?«

To his surprise, Yawo smiled when he reached into his bag and handed Marcus what looked like a metal ruler. It was an iron saw, just thin enough to fit the gap.

»Good old handwork!«

Obviously, Yawo thought it would be nice if the white guy worked whilst the black was observing him, for he leaned against the wall, holding the flashlight for Marcus who started sawing. Progress was slow, and he grunted:

»What if the old fellow is waiting behind the door, with a gun in his hand?«

»Then, our two captives will face an untimely end«, Yawo replied, causing an anxious mmphing from the two hogtied girls to their feet.

***

The constant jingling of the bells clamped to their nipples, mixed with the sound of the bigger bells, had drowned the sound of the shot and the crashed armour from upstairs, and so, the five struggling captives were unaware of what was going on outside their prison. The Erzherzog had sunken from his throne, obviously dead already. Still, the gas was hissing, and Silvana, who had managed to shift her position a bit, had watched how Marlene had squirmed on her chair more and more vigorously, frantically flailing her lower legs. She was wailing through her gag, and her chest was heaving from her raising panic.

Silvana couldn’t help staring between her legs; not at Marlene’s exposed middle, but at the seat, where, through small air holes, she could see the tealights flicker. She wondered whether it would end up in a big explosion, or if they would slowly burn to death.

»Mph! Mph! Uuhhmmmmm!«

Marlene suddenly twitched, and then, she shuddered, and suddenly, Silvana could no longer see the burning candles. It took her a while to realize what had happened: Marlene had lost control over her bladder and thus extinguished the flames.

Silvana let out a fluttering breath, feeling a wave of relief that was, however, replaced by new horrors: now, they would slowly suffocate from the gas! She screamed through her gag and fought her bonds, only manging to rock back and forth a little.

Close to her, Nabia also thought that the end was near when she had been distracted from looking at Annika by a movement at the door. She had then feared she was either beginning to hallucinate from the gas, or that the inferno was beginning, as there were pink clouds whirling around the door frame. They had ceased, however, but now, there was another movement. Nabia first thought it was yet another imagination, but there was something pushing through the gap, moving back and forth. She now could hear a scratching sound, and there were occasional orange points dancing in the air.

Nabia pulled her remaining strength together and stared at the door. Now, she could see that obviously, someone was slowly sawing through the hinges.

»Nnhmmph! Ghhmmmm!«

Wild hope washed through her, accompanied by fear: the orange points were sparks, caused by the sawing of metal, and if one of them would ignite the gas, their rescuers would kill them all, including themselves!

Her excitement reached Annika, who was connected to her via the crotch rope. She rocked back and forth more heavily, not knowing what was going on, but noticing Nabia’s commotion. Silvana also moaned and squirmed, and Abina felt the others’ unruliness and also did a clumsy dance on one leg, unable to see what was going on under her hood. Only Marlene remained quiet, but only because she had fainted.

***

Finally, the saw had cut through the second hinge, too. Marcus’ palm hurt, and he massaged his fingers whilst he watched Yawo tie their captives’ ankles separately before cutting their hogties and pulling them to their feet, so they could use them as human shields. Marcus grabbed Louise’s upper arms and watched how Yawo, holding Valentina with his left and his gun in his right, kicked against the door that slowly swung open.

They were greeted by the sound of bells, accompanied by a high-pitched humming, and they entered carefully. After a few steps, they let go their captives who sank to the floor.

»Wow!«

Marcus’ eyes fell on a tall naked Black that seemed to hover a foot above the ground. It was Nabia, tied to a board, and staring at him with eyes like saucers over a band tied over her mouth. Beside her, another woman was sitting on a headless rocking horse, also stark naked and from her red hair, he could tell it was Annika.

There were two chairs in the middle of the room. The one facing Marcus looked like a throne, and to its feet, a man in a red robe was lying motionless, whilst in the one he was only seeing the backrest, the feet of the person occupying it were hanging over the armrests.

»Mhhmmm!«

His eyes went to the left, and there, he could see another black woman, her breasts thrust out unnaturally, and her face covered by a hood, dangling from a collar around her neck. Marcus jumped to her and helped her to regain balance, trying to loosen the rope forcing her other leg into the air.

»Nhhrrrrmmm! Ghhmmmm! Mmhhmmph!«

He would have nearly dropped the woman he had just saved. To his feet, put in the most rigid hogtie he had ever seen, her head forced back, and staring at him through the leg openings of a pair of panties, was-

»Silvie!«

»Mmhrrrmmmm!«

The surprisingly loud gurgle had come from Nabia when she had seen Yawo light a cigarette. Trembling and panting, she now watched as he frowned at his lighter. The flame had looked brighter and been higher than usual. Then, he noticed the hissing and saw the red gas bottle.

»Fucking hell!«

He jumped over to the bottle and closed the valve. Then, he took a few deep breaths before he once again frowned, looking closer at the gas bottle. Then, he began to chuckle. Nabia let out an angry grunt, and he showed her the cap. A bit of the red paint had flaked off, revealing the blue paint underneath. Yawo grinned, showing his relief.

»It’s an oxygen bottle! Whatever else they did to you, the gas was just a prank!«

Nabia twisted her eyes, and for a moment, Yawo thought she was annoyed. However, the tough soldier had just fainted.

Of course, Marcus wanted to get to Silvana, and so, he had just removed the ropes fixing Abina to the ceiling and lowered her to the floor before crouching beside her, caressing her face and kissing her forehead.

»Poor girl! I will have you freed soon, then, this is all over!«

***

»Soon«, however, turned out to be relative, for Yawo insisted to examine the old man lying on the floor, finding out he was dead, though he could not see external wounds, and his expression was almost peaceful. Nevertheless, with the dead body almost touching the damsels, they decided to pull him to a corner and drape an old blanket over his body.

Marcus then returned to Silvana, working on her bonds. Progress was slow, for the Pervitin was beginning to cease, and he had no knife, but finally, he could pluck the two compressed and sodden panties from the girl’s mouth and though her lips felt parched, she kissed him back. Then, Silvana looked at him and blinked.

»A-Are you crying?«

Marcus forced a smile on his face whilst a tear ran down his cheek.

»Must be the dust in here!«

They kissed again before Marcus decided to help Yawo, only to discover that the once so tough agent hadn’t gone very far. He had removed Abina’s hood, but now, it seemed that he was overwhelmed by her naked beauty and somehow tried to free her without looking too much, let alone touching her too much. Given the fact that the buckle of Abina’s crotch strap was embedded deeply between her legs, this was a bit of a dilemma.

Marcus staggered over to Marlene who looked at him with tearful eyes. First, he thought she was relieved, or maybe embarrassed, but then, he understood.

»Hilmar’s alive!«, he whispered, and Marlene weakly raised her head. He nodded and told her that he had been brought to hospital by a helicopter, and so, he couldn’t say much, but when he had last seen Hilmar, he had not been dead.

Marlene now let out a fluttering breath and groaned with the relief this news gave her. Another, more painful moan, distracted Marcus, and he told Silvana to take care of Marlene, for he had to get Annika from the Spanish Horse now. The Policewoman squeezed her eyes and groaned deeply when he lifted her from the edge that had been pressing against her soft flesh for hours.

At least, freeing her was easier, for the keys to her chains were hanging on the wall, and once Annika was ungagged, she had regained enough strength to get over to Nabia and, still on all fours, she caressed her leg.

»I will – free you – as soon as I can – get up!«

It took them another hour until all damsels were freed and provisionally covered. Marlene and Silvana were sharing a blanket, cuddling against each other and sitting at one of the walls. Marlene had some issues in finding a convenient position: the spikes in the chair’s seat and backrest hadn’t pierced her skin, but left thousands of small red dots that now felt itchy on her buttocks.

Beside them were Annika and Nabia who had a curtain Marcus had ripped from one of the lobby windows over their bodies. They seemed exhausted, but obviously, their presence helped them to support each other.

Abina had a curtain for her own, and Yawo had even placed his folded jacket under her head, so she could rest conveniently. Then, he had pulled himself together and told Marcus that they still had Valentina and Louise to take care of. These two were still lying on the floor, tied hand and foot with zip ties, blindfolded and gagged.

»They need to be punished – and right now, I am not in the mood to be lenient!«

Marcus noticed that he seemed focussed only on Abina when speaking. However, it was Annika who first spoke:

»They deserve justice, not revenge! I mean, I may have proven to be the worst Policewoman in the world, but I don’t want to be responsible for another murder!«

Nabia put her arm around Annika.

»You are a good Policewoman – but I say, let them live, they are not worth a bullet!«

Now, Yawo frowned, not used to Nabia being that lenient towards an enemy. He also noted the chemistry between her and the redhead, and a glimpse of his former smile reappeared.

»Do you have a phone?«, Marlene suddenly croaked. Yawo looked at her and nodded, and she said with trembling lips:

»I-I don’t want them t-to die – but if I kn-know how b-bad Hilmar is, I-«

She didn’t finish her sentence, but Yawo understood, and he handed his phone to Marcus who would sound more convincing if he pretended to be a hiking comrade of Hilmar. Nervous himself, he dialled the hospital and the receptionist could at least tell him that he could visit Hilmar the next day, for he was currently sleeping. Marlene sobbed with relief, and Silvana hugged her. Of course, they didn’t know about his injuries, but he was alive, and the fact they could visit him by tomorrow implied he wasn’t in intensive care!

»So, the only person you killed was maybe Karl, and I can’t blame you for that. Now, what about the old fellow?«

Yawo ungagged Valentina, and she confessed what was obvious: that she and Louise had assisted the Erzherzog in his »grand finale«, though she insisted that it had been her idea to replace the butane by oxygen.

»We would have called the cops after we had gotten away! So, it would have been nothing but a little scare for the girls! Weuuuhhmmph!«

Her defeat got interrupted when Yawo gagged her again. Whilst sealing her lips with a piece of tape, he concluded:

»There are still attempted murder in at least four cases, kidnapping, torture – you name it! You may not deserve death, but-«

He flexed his fingers in a way his knuckles cracked. He then let his eyes wander over a collection of whips and chains hanging on the wall, when suddenly he felt a soft touch on his shoulder. It was Abina, and she whispered in Akan:

»They aren’t worse than me!«

Yawo’s eyes widened, and she added:

»They tortured people for their own benefit – something I did to Marlene, Silvana and others, for the same reason! And you and Uncle Kofi want me to do it as a profession, though it will of course be for our country’s benefit!«

She almost spat the last word, and Yawo stared at her. He wanted to contradict, but he had to admit that she was right. It was one thing to bend the law, but Uncle Kofi wanted Abina to become a professional torturer. And obviously, her extended practice on both the giving and the receiving end had convinced Abina that this was a terrible idea.

Yawo took a deep breath.

»So, you want me to just call the Austrian Police, so they will be given a slap on their fingers!«

He didn’t have the best opinion about the European law enforcement. Now, for the first time, Silvana spoke:

»Maybe we can have both – a punishment according to the law, plus a dose of sheer, heart-warming revenge!«

They gathered around her, so she could explain her plan without Louise and Valentina being able to overhear it. When she had finished, Nabia and Annika showed a devious grin, and Marcus looked at her with disbelief.

»I never knew a going-to-be primary school teacher can be so mean!«

Silvana smiled and cocked her head.

»It’s part of the job description!«

***

»Nnggggggg!«

Valentina agreed with her companion, but she was as able as Louise to express her feelings by anything but a faint groan. Their former captives had proved to be apt pupils when it had come to restrain them in a humiliating fashion.

They had been kind enough not to leave them in the cellar, together with the Erzherzog’s corpse, but instead, they had been brought to the »official« torture chamber where they had replaced two of the paper mâché dummies, though with a few applications.

Louise had been released from her bonds, only to be locked into a pillory, forcing her to stand bent forward, her neck and wrists locked inside a wooden board. Then, her ankles had been strapped to the pillory’s feet, so Louise had to fight for balance.

This had been taken care of, for a thin chain had been slung around her waist and between her legs and then been fixed to the ceiling, in a way it felt inconvenient as long as she held still – and agonizing once she lowered her butt.

»Now, just a small reminder of me – though ›small‹ is maybe the wrong word to describe it!«, Marlene had then purred. She had then removed the tape and rag from Louise’s mouth, only to place a clothespin on the blonde’s nose, forcing her to keep her mouth when Marlene crammed her own moist panties that had been used as a gag to Nabia and then to Annika into her mouth. Marcus assisted her in applying the scold’s bridle between her captive’s lips. Then, she took off the clothespin, but Silvana took it from her. A few seconds later, it bit into Louise’s nipple, followed by a second one to the other.

»Just to make me remember me, too!«, she breathed, taking off Louise’s blindfold. Now, Nabia stepped behind the helpless blonde.

»Just thank God that I still feel exhausted!«, she said before she spanked Louise’s buttocks, causing her to scream and writhe in her bonds, despite the tight crotch chain. Annika’s revenge consisted of applying some toothpaste to her sore buttocks, whilst Abina, unable to assist in any more torture, was waiting in the court, smoking one of Yawo’s cigarettes.

Marcus decided that the whole arrangement needed a finishing touch and so, he draped a pair of Nabia’s panties over her face. Then, it was Valentina’s turn to be fixed until the Police would follow the anonymous call Yawo would do in some hours.

The raven haired woman was sporting the armbinder, the crotch strap applied so tight it disappeared between her labia. Her ankles were tied to the ends of a four feet spreader bar, and she was held upright by Yawo whilst Marcus and Silvana forced another pair of Marlene’s panties into her mouth, adding one of her sockets before securing the gag with the scold’s bridle. Then, it was revenge time for the former captives.

Whilst Nabia and Annika were satisfied with spanking her and rubbing some toothpaste onto her reddened skin, Silvana applied clothespins to her nipples. Marlene then showed that she had learned a thing or two about torturing, too.

After hooding Valentina with another of Nabia’s panties, she tied a rope to the eyelet on top of the scold’s bridle, put it over a ceiling hook and then tied a lantern to it. This lantern was quite heavy, forcing Valentina to remain upright, but that wasn’t the worst of it. Marlene had placed several lit candles inside and left the lantern’s door open. So, if Valentina struggled too much, she would spill hot wax all over her naked skin.

»Don’t worry, by tomorrow, you will be in a nice prison cell!«

They hoped that with all the evidence left, the Austrian Police would be able to send these two behind bars for a few years. Without looking back, they left the castle and met with Abina. All of them had dressed provisionally with clothes from Valentina and Louise. Yawo now held a dangling key to his former henchwoman who sported a pink sleeveless dress that had looked short on Louise, but barely covered the tall Black’s butt.

»I discovered a Land Rover over there, and I don’t think that the Police will mind car theft, according to what they will have to deal with!«

Nabia nodded silently, and Yawo shook her hand. Marcus did the same, followed by Marlene, who, after some hesitating, quickly hugged the Black who had tortured her, but finally also tried to save their lives. Abina and Silvana also bid farewell to her, and so, only Annika stood opposite to her. Nabia sniffled, as she felt an urge she hadn’t felt for years – the urge to sob.

»So, it’s me on the run again – unless you arrest me, as you had intended originally!«

Annika sported another dress of Louise, slightly more decent than Nabia’s. She cleared her throat; then, she asked with a hoarse voice:

»Maybe, you are open to yet another option?«

Now, Nabia showed a sad smile.

»What? Abscond, and secretly marry?«

Now, Annika blushed slightly, but she smiled when she continued:

»First, we would get to my flat in Würzburg. It’s rather small, and we would have to share the same bedroom, but-«

»Sounds promising so far«, Nabia replied, and her fingers brushed over Annika’s bare shoulders. The redhead gasped, but she continued:

»Tomorrow, I will sign a transfer request. We have a shortage of personnel in the more rural areas, and so, in a few months, we could start a new life somewhere in Upper Palatinate. In the meantime, with a little help from Yawo, you should be able to get a legal status, maybe even an allowance to work, so you won’t have to live of my money all the time!«

Nabia suddenly chuckled, and Annika playfully pulled on her ear.

»What’s so funny?«

Nabia slung her arms around Annika’s waist and pulled her close.

»My mom always feared I would end up as a gangster’s bride – and now, I am about to become the wife of a Policewoman!«

They kissed, and after some seconds, they decided that since they were both girls, both of them could bend her calf.

***

When they had reached their cars, Silvana wondered where Annika and Nabia were staying. Then, finally, the Land Rover left the castle, passing them without stopping, but with both Annika and Nabia waving at them. Marcus grinned.

»All they are missing is some tin cans tied to the car!«

They then said Goodbye to Yawo who would take Abina with him. She sat beside him in his car, wearing nothing but a white jacket from Valentina that closed at her neck, but ended at the top of her long, shapely legs. She cleared her throat.

»Now what? Will you bring me to Uncle Kofi?«

Instead of an answer, Yawo stopped the car at the side of the road. Then, he looked at her, seeming a bit nervous as he said:

»Maybe, I could convince him that you – couldn’t stand the pressure required for your future career! That you proved to be too weak for a career in the Secret Service!«

Abina scoffed.

»You didn’t even have to lie! Phew, I might need a therapy myself! But what will Uncle Kofi do? He has invested quite a sum in my education, after all!«

Now, Yawo smiled, though he still looked as if he had seen a ghost.

»It’s just money, though quite a lot of it! However, I am sure I can convince him that you will pay him back – once you have started your work here in Germany! It’s like paying back a student’s loan, so to say!«

For a few seconds, Abina considered his idea. Then, she asked:

»But-«

Yawo frowned, and she continued:

»Your plan sounds excellent – but the way you look, and shift on your seat makes me think that there’s a big ›but‹ in it!«

She looked at the man who now rubbed over his face, seeming more nervous than ever when they had met before. Abina noticed that he had to force himself not to look at her bare legs.

»The only ›but‹ is that I would have to look after you regularly – to make sure that you are paying your debts!«

Abina raised her eyebrow.

»And you’d not like to see me?«

She turned towards him in her seat, knowing that the jacket now would maybe even allow him a glimpse at her crotch. Her voice sounded hoarse as she breathed:

»I thought you’d like the sight of me!«

Now, Yawo looked like a schoolboy as he confessed that he had been a fool by not recognizing earlier how beautiful Abina was. She suddenly showed a stern expression.

»You mean that you only appreciated my looks when I was stark naked and hooded?«

His jaw dropped, and Abina’s lips trembled a bit. Oppressing an impish smile, she added:

»So, all you see in me is a pair of boobs?«

Yawo opened his mouth, but Abina placed her index finger on his lips. His eyes widened when her other hand opened the first button of her borrowed jacket.

»I might forgive you if you agree to help me in some trauma therapy!«

Slowly unbuttoning her jacket, she explained to him:

»It’s one approach among may, but it’s called ›association change‹. Now, I am associating being naked with getting humiliated and tortured. However, if I manage to associate it with something – more pleasant-«

The jacket gaped open, and Yawo bent forward, kissing Abina’s moist lips.

***

Marcus, Silvana and Marlene had changed clothes at the van, and so, Yawo had had quite a head start. When they then spotted his car at the side of the road, they slowed down to ask him if he needed help. Then, however, Marlene noticed that the windows were fogged-up, and that the car was slightly swaying. So, they decided that the two Blacks could do without their help and they continued their way to the hospital.

»Even if he won’t wake up, I just have to see him!«, Marlene had insisted, and neither Marcus nor Silvana had disagreed with her.

Since the town was small, so was the hospital, and it only had one parking lot. Here, Silvana saw two Police cars parked, and on one of them leaned an Officer armed with a submachine gun.

»Are they expecting us?«, she asked nervously, but when they reluctantly left their car, the man didn’t take notice and they could enter the lobby where Marlene asked for Hilmar’s room, insisting that she was his girlfriend and needed to see him. She managed to persuade the receptionist to call the doctor on duty, Silvana leaned over the desk and played the naïve girl.

»Tell me, why is there an armed Policeman outside? Has there been a terrorist attack?«

The elderly woman shook her head, looked around and then told her in a lowered voice:

»Yesterday, there was a burning car, and the paramedics brought in a heavily wounded guy – with a shot wound!«

Silvana gasped and widened her eyes, so the clerk continued:

»And, as they brought him here, they also found a girl – naked, bound and gagged! She’s currently under observation, but when the Police asked her, she began talking like a waterfall! It turns out that the guy with the shot wound is a criminal! He survived the shot, but now, there’s a Policeman in front of his door 24/7, and they will sure have a lot of questions to him once he has recovered enough to be interrogated!«

Silvana took a deep breath. Her legs suddenly felt wobbly, and she leaned against Marcus who led her to a bench and took her in his arms.

She had dreamed about Karl getting punished a thousand times – and now, as it happened, it felt slightly disappointing: instead of rotting in hell, he would only spend some years in an Austrian prison. And Judith would act as crown witness and get away with it.

However, she remembered how they had punished Valentina and Louise, and though she didn’t regret it, she hadn’t felt better by doing so. What mattered was that they would not be able to continue their evil careers, and that she and Marcus would be able to finally live a life without her constantly being kidnapped, bound and gagged.

»Are you okay?«, Marcus asked, and she answered by kissing him.

***

The doctor had allowed Marlene to sneak into Hilmar’s room after she had promised not to wake him up. Before, the man had told her that he would take some time for recovery, but that his broken bones would heal.

Nevertheless, she had to oppress a gasp when, in the light of the moon shining through the window, she saw Hilmar lie on his back, both his legs and one of his arms heavily bandaged, and with an infusion needle at his arm.

Silently, she took his unbandaged hand and held it, until she suddenly felt his fingers move. Marlene looked up, and she saw that Hilmar was awake. To her amazement, she saw tears glister in his eyes.

»I – I thought you were dead«, he croaked, and now, he shuddered from a sob of relief. Marlene also cried, but at the same time, she smiled.

»I am fine!«

Carefully, she kissed his lips, and then, whilst she continued crying, she breathed:

»I also thought that you were dead!«

Now, Hilmar managed to smile a bit.

»I am fine, too – well, quite fine!«

Marlene placed her head on his chest and led his hand to her face, so he could caress her cheek and chin. She felt him gulp, and then, he asked:

»Marlene Gutermann-«

She looked up to him, her heart suddenly beating wildly. Hilmar seemed nervous, but he continued:

»One could say that today, both of us were granted a new life! That means-«

»That means that we can start this new life, leaving the past behind«, Marlene continued his words and bent forward so they could kiss. Then, she withdrew, and her hand wandered under the sheet and down his belly.

»You have to sleep now, dear Hilmar!«

Hilmar gasped when her fingers closed around a part of him that wasn’t covered by a cast, but nevertheless felt hard. Marlene bent forward, so her ample breasts touched his chest.

»You have to sleep now! And I will take care that soon, you will feel relaxed enough to do so!«

The End