Combining Business and Pleasure 15

For a while, Babette had tried to just lie still, waiting for rescue to come, and to waste as little energy as possible. She wasn’t going anywhere, and so, squirming was useless anyway. So, she had been lying on her side, watching the slow progress of the minutes on the digital clock.

However, lying on one side was getting more and more uncomfortable, and so, Babette decided to try if she could shift to the other side. After a few breaths, she tensed her muscles and tried to turn onto her back, so she could rest on her other side for a while.

»Uuhhmmph!«

After a minute of squirming and struggling, Babette gave up. The rigid hogtie, and her head forced back by the tape looped over her feet made it impossible for her to get onto her back. She tried to ignore the sore feeling on her left side; then, she thought that perhaps, she could turn the other way, over her front.

When she tried to do so, her left breast turned out to be the obstacle; however, unlike her arms and legs, this could be squeezed. Babette threw herself forward, starting a short chain of events.

Her sudden move made her pull on the rope connecting her legs to her crotch rope, and a sudden pain shot through her soft flesh. Babette spasmed and twitched, and to her amazement, she didn’t just turn onto her belly, but further on, and then, there was no more mattress.

»Oouuuhhmmph!«

She fell off the bed, landing on her front, and the impact forced the air out of her lungs. Panting, Babette lay there, more and more realizing that she wasn’t hurt.

»Luckily, I had my airbags thrust out!«, she thought and felt a giggle in her throat. Her breasts scraped over the carpet, and she found out that lying on the floor wasn’t a change for the better. Even worse, she was now trapped between the bed and the wall, denying her the luxury of lying on one side.

»Perhaps, I can get forward, just one or two yards! Then, I have enough room to move some more!«

Babette started to squirm. Now, the rough carpet felt like sandpaper on her breasts and belly, and each move, she paid with a tug on her crotch rope. She sweated profusely, and she had to pause often. When Babette needed to rest for a while, she had just come off from the gap until her waist.

»How fast can one die from thirst?«

Her throat felt sore, and the constant sweating took its toll. Trying to ignore the vile taste, and what her saliva was filtered by, she sucked the liquid from the panties stuffing her mouth. Like a mockery, she could see the door of the little minibar, so close and yet so unreachable.

The ability to lie on her side again became like an obsession, and she forced herself to worm forward, until she had come off from the gap between the bed and the wall. With a sigh of relief, she turned onto her right, staring at the cabin door.

»Now, I guess it’s 1am! So, if I count to 20.000, this door will open, and a rescuer will find me!«

»Yes, stark naked, and most likely in a puddle of pee!«, another voice in her head answered, and Babette shuddered. Somehow, the idea of having to relieve herself with the rope still tied between her legs was more horrifying than the other aspects of having to spend more hours bound and gagged.

»I can try my luck! The toilet’s just four yards away!«

Babette stared at the door, where something white was hanging from the handle. It was the bathrobe John had put on, after he had taken the shower – right after he had thrust himself into her, whilst Davenport had been watching her in the throes of passion, had heard her moans and sighs-

Her cheeks blushed, and again, the word »naïve« felt like a terrible verdict.

»At least, he also said I am not dumb!«, Babette tried to console herself. Of course, there had been a lot of dumb blonde jokes in her past, but that had been the usual mockery. Babette had graduated from High School not with excellent marks, but also without problems, and she had finished her schooling as a financial clerk quite well, too.

»And even if I were a female Einstein, I would still be trapped!«

However, it seemed that her reminder of her intelligence had triggered a thought. Something with the door, or with the bathrobe dangling from the door handle. Suddenly, Babette got it.

Whilst the doors had knobs on the outside, they had handles on the inside, and they opened to the corridor, a safety measure in case of an emergency.

»The bathrobe! If I could reach the door, maybe, I can somehow pull on it! Perhaps, the door will spring open – if John hasn’t locked it!«

She looked at the door, guessing the distance was some two yards. Another 30 to 60 minutes of strenuous squirming, more painful tugs of her crotch rope, More steps towards total exhaustion.

And yet, she bit down on her gag and started wriggling, focussing the door and the dangling bathrobe.

***

»At least, they do something for our entertainment!«

The group of passengers at the gangway, both those who wanted to leave the ship and those who were just curious, had grown to some 50 people. They had witnessed how the Portuguese Policemen, all except for their commanding Officer armed with submachine guns, had stormed the gangway where the Officer had been welcomed by Captain Schmidt who wore his best uniform, together with his Captain’s cap. Beside him stood Martin Conradi, looking a bit dishevelled, his arm put around the waist of his wife who was clad in a bathrobe. She seemed to have difficulties in staying on her legs, but she spoke clearly and calm as she reported her part of the crime in fluent Portuguese.

Conradi had spotted Davenport and his entourage at the gangway; he still wasn’t sure what role the American was playing in all of this. According to Leonora, Karim had only had one henchman, one of the petty Officers, but Conradi found it suspicious that Davenport now had two men around him.

»Of course, it can all be just a precaution that has got nothing to do with me! A man with his background perhaps needs two bodyguards, one obvious one, and one in disguise!«

There was also the point that Davenport wanted to leave the ship, but perhaps, he was just trying to negotiate with some Portuguese, about a business that also had nothing to do with him.

There was no sign of Babette; perhaps, the girl was hiding until the last moment before she would sneak from the ship.

He got distracted by loud murmuring and some hooting when another group reached the deck: some half a dozen seamen, led by a brunette woman clad in a blanket she wore like a toga and wielding a gun. Two of the men held a man in an overall between them; he had a black eye and a bruise on his chin, and he was struggling against their grip. However, the greatest surprise were the two who were carrying a naked and hogtied woman who was sporting a harness gag and who also tried to break free from the two men.

»Captain! We have arrested those two! The others are petty Officer Andreas Holm and-«

»And masseur Karim Boulaga!«, Leonora added. Captain Schmidt looked as if he had bitten in an apple and just realized it had a worm in it. The Portuguese Police Sergeant approached Melissa and let her eyes wander over the strangely clad armed woman.

»Who are you, Senhorita?«, he asked with a strong accent. Melissa straightened.

»Police Officer Melissa Bauer, ship’s security, to your service!«

Impressed by her attitude, the Sergeant saluted, and she reflexively did the same. One moment later, she realized that such a move was a bad idea if one was only clad in a blanket. It fell off her shoulders, and the collective gasp around her told Melissa that not only the Sergeant had noticed she wore nothing underneath.

»Oopsie!«, she stated in the moment of silence. Her cheeks were aflame, but at the same time, she once again felt the urge to giggle. To the Sergeant, she said:

»So much for an impressive entrance!«

»O-oh, impressive, it was!«, the man croaked. Then, he found back his professional attitude and draped the blanket over Melissa’s shoulders whilst ordering his men to get Sammy and Yema to the Police car at the pier.

»Two to go!«, he grimly stated.

***

Karim’s retreat had more and more turned into a hasty getaway. There seemed to be people on every corridor, and at least some of them seemed to know that he was among the wanted criminals. So, after a prolonged zigzag through several corridors, he had found himself at the pool deck where the barkeeper was busy with two late guests, allowing him to hide behind a pile of deckchairs.

»That’s what they call a miserable failure!«

Had he left Leonora alone, even if he had added her to the group of girls ready to be shipped and sold, he now would be able to leave the ship as a free man, expecting a small fortune. Now, he had flown too close to the sun, and he could be lucky he still had his life.

He felt for his pocket, and despite him still being nervous, he grinned. The folded paper in his back pocket was the check Conradi had written for him, for the »Special Treatment« of his wife. 20.000 Euro! Not the fortune he had expected, but enough for a getaway and a new start.

»Now, all I have to do is waiting for a chance to leave the ship, and hope that Conradi forgets to cancel the check before the bank houses open!«

His glimpse of hope was rudely interrupted by a kick to his butt that sent him against the piled deckchairs. Together with a few of those, the surprised man landed inside the pool. Karim struggled to get to the surface. The moment his head broke through, a hand grabbed his scalp, and a voice with a harsh accent shouted:

»Where is Johanna?«

Karim was able to identify Sato and to babble a few syllables before his head was forced below water again. He was a strong man, and he fought desperately, but nevertheless, the Japanese held his head down until bubbles of air came from his mouth.

»Where is Johanna?«, Sato repeated towards the gasping man he had allowed to breathe.

»Fuck you!«

Sato forced him under water again. He would get his answers, and if the bastard would die! A strange sound came from the struggling Karim, and more bubbles reached the surface.

Suddenly, there were several persons, two of them trying to pull him away from Karim. Sato freed his arm with a grunt, but there were more, and he finally rose, punching one of the seamen and kicking another in the balls before three more threw themselves upon him. Struggling in their grip, he watched as two men in uniform pulled the gasping Karim from the pool, only to put him in handcuffs.

»Where is Johanna?«, he shouted.

***

Deep in the lower decks of the »Mauretania II«, Andreas Holm had taken off his uniform shirt and put some grease on his sleeveless T-Shirt and trousers. He hoped that here, nobody would notice him as the wanted petty Officer. Indeed, the few people of the machine personnel that were on duty hardly noticed him.

Forcing himself to walk around as if he had all time of the world, he made it to one of the load decks, and when he spotted the white van, he knew that he had returned to where he had been just one or two hours before.

The »Mauretania II« had two gangways for passengers, but she also had big iron doors on each side of her hull. These were for the masses of food, beverages and other supply an ocean liner needed, and they were big enough to be used by a car. The system was faster and more convenient than carrying everything or using cranes, and it allowed the kitchen personnel to buy fresh products during one of the ship’s harbour stops.

Now, the big waterproof gate had been opened, and the ramps had been placed, so the van could drive onto the pier. If everything would have been as planned, there now would be him and his accomplices; now, a man in a white frock, obviously someone from the kitchen, and a seaman were discussing with a man in a Police uniform guarding the exit.

Andreas spoke Spanish, allowing him to understand what the Portuguese spoke into his radio, obviously asking for advice from his superiors. It seemed that the guy from the kitchen wanted to leave for the market of Porto, to be there when it opened early in the morning, whilst the Policeman had order to let no one pass.

»All right!«, he finally announced in broken English, »Cook may pass, but I must check car!«

The kitchen guy shrugged, and Andreas saw him approach the van. Spontaneously, he decided to go all in: either, he would be arrested within the next few minutes, or he would be the only one of his gang who made a successful escape.

»Eh, where are you going?«

He stepped forward, his left in his pocket, and scratching his chin with the other to hide his facial features a bit.

»To the market! Get some fresh sea food and fish for our passengers!«

Andreas spat onto the ground, something he usually despised.

»Well, not in that car – unless you want to risk food poisoning from hell!«

He told the man that the cooling system of the van was defunct, and that he would have to use the second van. This was parked right behind; the only problem was that the way was blocked by the first car. Andreas grinned.

»If you have a cigarette for me, I will drive the car onto the pier, so you can pass! The engine’s okay, as far as I know!«

In Spanish, he then explained the situation to the Policeman who, after another assuring call, accepted the situation. Andreas entered the driver’s seat and started the engine, slowly passing the ramp whilst the Policeman checked if no one was hiding in the second car.

»He, where are you going?«

The Policeman yelled after Andreas who slowly drove towards the land end of the pier. He even pointed the gun at him, and he patiently explained to him that the pier was too narrow for the second car to overtake, and thus, he had to make the way free.

Of course, he could have ordered Andreas to just drive backwards, but now, the second van had passed the ramp, too, and so, the Policeman just grunted a curse and let both cars pass.

At the end of the pier, Andreas could spot a Police van where some Officers were just forcing Sammy inside.

»Good luck, Sammy!«, he murmured and stepped onto the gas. The Policemen were busy with their prisoners, and their cars were stopped; thus, Andreas had passed the next corner before they were able to stop him.

In her box on the load, Johanna helplessly swayed back and forth, following the laws of physics. She had realized the box had been placed in the back of a car, and she had tried to call for help when she had heard voices. However, there had been the sounds of the ship, since the huge engines were not far away, and in addition, the foam padding of her tiny prison cut off almost all noise the heavily gagged woman could make.

Her limbs hurt from the harsh bondage, and she had given up struggling long ago, knowing she would not get free on her own accord. With the box now placed inside the car, she could see nothing but blackness, she could barely hear sound from outside, and she had to concentrate on breathing through her nose, covered by her own panties.

Now, the car was speeding and taking sharp turns, and Johanna learned that even at the Abyss, there were new levels of fear and pain for her to discover.

***

 »Meanwhile, John is either sitting in the lounge of Porto Airport, or in his seat in a plane already!«

Babette had lost all count of time; all she knew as that the point of complete exhaustion wasn’t far. She was no stranger to the gym, and she was young, but struggling in her stringent bonds whilst being so thoroughly gagged had taken its toll on her. The sweat covering her skin was now sticky, there was no muscle that wasn’t aching, and whilst the progress on the carpet grew smaller, the pauses she needed between two attempts to wriggle forward grew longer.

»A little longer, and I will just faint, only to wake up if the service personnel will find me the next morning!«

At least, she had now reached the cabin door. On the other side, she could hear steps, indistinct voices and oppressed laughter.

»Mmhhmmmmm! Uuuhhmmmmmmm! Hhmmmmmmm!«

Her gagged mouth almost touched the door, but still, there was no reaction. Before frustration could stifle the little energy she had left inside her, Babette collected all her strength for the last effort she would be able to make before she would either swoon or lie down on the floor wheezing until she was found.

Groaning as the crotch rope bit into her soft flesh, she squirmed her body as much as her bondage allowed, only to push herself against the door. Thanks to the bathrobe that slid over the wood, she managed to press not only her head against the door, but also her breasts. With one last twitch, she pushed forward.

»Uuhhmph!«

The bathrobe slid from the door handle, burying her face. Babette wanted to cry from sheer frustration when she sensed something else: the door slowly slid open; obviously, John hadn’t locked it. Then, she heard a shrill female voice:

»Oh my God!«

***

Since Sato wasn’t one of the wanted criminals, he hadn’t been handcuffed like Karim, but still, two men held his arms whilst the Policeman he had hit angrily glared at him, obviously waiting for an opportunity to pay him back with his baton. He didn’t dare to do so, for Conradi had stepped close to Sato, expressing some authority. He still held Leonora in his arms, but she was a bit absent-minded, as she was listening to the Sergeant talking via his radio.

»He says that one of the ship’s delivery vans just passed the men on land! They are after it now, but he’s got a head start!«

Having heard that, Karim, waiting to be brought to the Police van, chuckled, grinning at Sato.

»You wanted to know where Johanna is, eh? There she goes – and you will never see her again!«

Sato did not try to go against him, but both Conradi and Leonora noticed his grief and worry, though he was trying to hide it.

»Johanna?«, Leonora asked. She had never thought of Sato having feelings aside from loyalty to her husband. The Japanese forced a grim smile on his face.

»Long story!«

He then looked at Conradi.

»Martin-San! You remember us talking about priorities?«

Conradi nodded. After all, this had been just a few hours ago. He had prioritised finding Leonora over the lost folder, though it meant a heavy loss of money. And though he didn’t know anything about this Johanna, he understood that now, Sato wanted to set priorities. Conradi rummaged through his Japanese to find the right words. Stepping in front of Sato, he bowed and said in Japanese:

»Thanks for everything, good luck, and I hope to see you again soon!«

Sato also wanted to bow, but his guards didn’t let him. Leonora cuddled against Conradi and whispered into his ear:

»What’s the problem?«

Conradi replied through gritted teeth:

»He has to go after Johanna!«

Leonora pressed his hand.

»Trust me!«

She stepped a few steps away, secretly loosening the belt of her bathrobe. Then, with an almost theatrical move, she gasped and sank to the planks, allowing her robe to gape. The men around all made a gesture towards her, either to help or to get a better look, and the two men holding Sato also loosened their grip.

Sato stepped on the right man’s foot, using his surprise to free his arm. With that, he punched the other’s stomach, and before they had fully realized what had happened, Sato had darted forward, ramming his shoulder against the Policeman. The Sergeant, who, together with Conradi, was trying to help Leonora up whilst shielding her from views, barked a command, and two Policemen with submachine guns ran after Sato who had disappeared into the dark.

Leonora quickly recovered and got to her feet, closing her bathrobe and cuddling against Conradi. The man turned his head towards Karim who had watched Sato’s escape with a mixture of anger and perplexion.

»Eh, Karim! Need a picture to think of, to make things easier in the prison’s shower?«

He kissed Leonora, and she slung her arms around him and kissed him back, passionate and like they hadn’t done for a long time, at least not in public. She bent her leg, and some of the passengers even applauded. They only stopped when the two Policemen arrived and reported:

»He – he jumped overboard!«

»Does that mean those who are not on your list may finally leave the ship?«, Davenport asked.

***

»If I am naïve, they are taking it to new levels!«

In any movie she had seen, whenever a bound and gagged girl was found, those who discovered her would free her immediately, and the silliest thing would be someone asking what happened whilst she still was gagged. These people, however, were of a different kind.

Her head still covered with the bathrobe, she could hear them chuckle, and an angry female voice even hissed:

»Don’t stare at her tits like that!«

»Shouldn’t we, you know, do something?«, a male voice asked, and Babette couldn’t believe her ears. She was bound and gagged, and they were discussing what to do?

»I mean, perhaps, it’s just their kink!«

He chuckled again.

»I mean, she got quite loud when they, you know, earlier-«

Babette groaned with frustration. These morons were thinking that this was part of some rough consensual sex game! Now, another female spoke:

»He should have never let her alone like that! What if she chokes?«

The bathrobe was pulled from her faced, and Babette looked into the face of a young woman with dark hair in a bob.

»Do you want us to set you free?«

To Babette, it sounded a bit as if she was asking Lassie whether Timmy had fallen into a well again. She tried to nod as emphatically as her rigid head to feet tie allowed, and the woman frowned.

»Was this a nod? I mean, we don’t want to disturb any-«

»Mmhrrrmm!«

Babette’s neck ached as she again tried to nod, and she could literally see the little cogs in the woman’s head slowly work. Her smile vanished, and she crouched beside her.

»Oh my God! Where shall we start? Linus, get a knife or something!«

The next minutes were long and embarrassing. Ella, the dark haired woman, took the lead and ordered the other two, Ronja and Noah, to get Babette back inside the cabin. This lasted longer than necessary, for obviously, Ronja was quite jealous and didn’t want Noah to touch Babette. Once inside, she waved her hand and commented:

»Phew, what a fragrance! Are you sure this isn’t just something kinky?«

Linus appeared with a pocketknife, and now, they started to work on her bonds, clumsily, but making progress. Babette groaned with relief when the tape connecting her  head and her feet was removed, allowing her to lower her head. Ella untied the damp scarf from her mouth and nose, and at the same time, Linus cut trough her hogtie. Again, she let out a deep long groan when she could stretch her legs – and then, her rescuers jumped back, as she whimpered and spasmed. The rope Linus had just cut had also been her crotch rope, and its release turned the dull pain into a burning one, and she couldn’t help writhing and moaning until it ceased to an inconvenient tingle.

A second knife was found, and Noah was allowed to free her feet and ankles whilst Linus sawed through the tape and neckties immobilizing her arms. Ella sent Ronja for a medic whilst she peeled on the tape wound around the lower half of her face. The pantyhose tied over her mouth underneath prevented her from pulling out more than just a few hairs.

Linus, who had finished loosening her arms, had to cut through the necktie between her lips, and Ella grimaced and used two fingers to pull the first of the tree panties from Babette’s mouth.

»Eww, gross!«, she commented as she saw what the girl was gagged with, and Babette felt a hysteric giggle build in her throat. She was too weakened to even help with her tongue, and so, Ella had to remove the other two panties alone. Babette helplessly drooled over her fingers.

The medic now arrived, and Babette was given some water whilst the man checked if she was physically hurt. Something shot through her mind, and she croaked:

»J-John! Da-Davenport!«

»Shall we inform someone?«, Ella asked, and Babette tried in vain to raise. Aided by the medic, and barely able to do more than a whisper, she said:

»Tell Conradi – he must – stop them!«

***

There had been sirens around, but Andreas was sure that no one had followed him on his way to the abandoned warehouse where he now stopped the van in the shadows. Little later, he was approached by a man with a rifle, and he forced a grin on his face.

»Fresh deliveries!«

Two more men appeared from the dark, and Andreas got out of the car, showing his hands to them so they could see he was unarmed.

»German or English, anyone?«

He was quite fluent in Spanish, but decided to hide that fact from his Portuguese partners he didn’t know well. One of the men stepped forward, telling him with only a little accent that he spoke English. Andreas reported that things had gone wrong on the ship.

»So, only I made it! And unfortunately, I could only get the blonde!«

He knew the men had seen the pictures and descriptions they had sent them. One of the others climbed onto the load and pointed at the box.

»We need to open and check?«

Andreas shrugged.

»If you have an electric screwdriver!«

The man held his ear to the box, and the faint whimper convinced him that Andreas wasn’t trying to sell lemons to them. He nodded, and Andreas grinned with relief.

»So, that’s a hundred Grand for me! Can any of you get me to the Spanish border? I don’t think I should take the van!«

»Our car is just over there! Joao!«

He added an order in Portuguese, and Joao entered the van, obviously to drive it somewhere. The English speaker offered a cigarette to Andreas, and when he lit it, he saw his face and knew he had made a mistake. It was too late.

The rifle butt of the third man hit his skull, and Andreas landed in the dust. The man checked him quickly and nodded to his comrade.

»he will wake up in two or three hours, and he will have headaches for the next few days! Too bad he only brought one – but since we are getting her for free-«

He chuckled, and his comrade rummaged through his pocket.

»How can you say for free, Tiago! I am paying in cash!«

He bent down to the unconscious Andreas and placed a few paper notes in his hand. It was 100.000 Euro, in Monopoly money. Laughing, the two men vanished into the dark.

***

Usually, two men transporting a third on a luggage trolley over a pier would have attracted some attention, even more as the bulky man was snoring loudly. However, John and Davenport reached their taxi without anyone noticing them, as the few Policemen still there were occupied by guarding the three prisoners in their van. Actually, just closing the doors would have done it, for all three were handcuffed, but since nobody had cared of getting Yema dressed, they all stared through the windows as the fuming pretty Asian sat in a corner, unable to hide her charms.

With the help of the taxi driver, they got Jeb onto the backseat and also attended the car. Davenport patted the Portuguese’s shoulder.

»English?«

»Yes, yes!«, the man nodded, and Davenport grinned.

»Vigo Airport! 2.000 if you get us there – 3 if you make it in less than two hours!«

The way the taxi speeded up told them the man had understood. Vigo was some 100 miles to the North and in Spain, but it had an airport, and if by some coincidence, Babette would be able to set an alarm, the Portuguese Police would assume they were at the airport at Porto.

»You businessmen?«

The taxi driver obviously wanted to start a conversation. Davenport looked into the mirror, with Jeb still sleeping, and John maybe remembering how he had banged the blonde bombshell. Four times, for God’s sake! Patting the bag on his lap, he answered:

»Let’s say we combined business and pleasure!«

The End

(or rather, to be continued…)