Header: Mia attempts to warn Melody. Detail from an issue of True Detective, Cervantes’ site.

Footer: In Molly’s clutches, Mia and Melody gagged and ready for shipment. From film ‘Sleeping Dogs,’ Movie Fan’s site.

It was a week later. Tilly had given Mia and Melody free use of her suburban hideaway while she was away on vacation. At the moment, Mia was the only person in the house, but she was preparing to go out on the town.

Mia put on her favourite red silk dress. It was freshly dry cleaned since the adventure in the old house and the warehouse rescue. Like Melody, Mia enjoyed the old fashioned touch of silk, and this day she casually knotted at her throat a small neck scarf the same colour as her dress. She took up her clasp bag and prepared to leave. She and Melody had arranged to meet with Melody and Broderick Clifford later that evening, but Mia wanted to spend the afternoon in the art gallery alone not far from the restaurant as a means of freeing her mind from the terrors of the previous week.

All was quiet on that front. According to Brod’s sources, the gang had gone to ground and were not likely to show their presence for some time. Security at the borders, and at all the ports - air and sea - was tight. The miscreants would have to remain in the state and it was only a matter of time before they were caught. Brod and Miles were also hopeful that something might be pinned on the elusive Sir Herbert Murgatroyd.

With a light heart, Mia skipped gracefully down the stairs in her new high heels, crossed the open-plan hallway to the door, turned the latch, stepped onto the front porch ... and backed up sharply. She was face to face with Molly the Gun. Karl was standing behind the woman, a sneer on his ugly face. He wore his usual drab suit. Molly looked glamorous dressed in a stylish trouser-suit.

‘Going somewhere, my dear?’ asked Molly coolly. ‘People who live in houses with plenty of glass should watch what they do. We’ve been following your movements for the past half hour. And we know you’re alone.’

‘Home alone,’ mocked Karl with an unpleasant cackle.

Mia backed away but came up against the door. She looked around wildly to see whether there were any neighbours about. But the front of the house was screened from the street by luxurious bushes. There was nothing she could say or do. The ugly blunt-nosed revolver in Molly’s hand was pointed unwaveringly at her and she knew better than to try to resist. This horrible woman would have no compunction in shooting her and passing the episode off as an unfortunate setback to their plans. Mia knew that in the final analysis she, and Melody for that matter, were expendable.

‘Take out your keys and open the door,’ Molly ordered.

As soon as they were inside the house, Molly put the gun away in her purse. ‘Karl, take Miss Chantal up to her bedroom and bind her hand and foot.’ Then, addressing Mia, ‘I don’t have to ask you to be obedient, do I?’

Mia walked ahead of her captors, mounting the stairs with dignity, her back straight and head high. ‘Lie face down on the bed, there’s a dear. Those stockings will do nicely. Such a change to see that you don’t go in for pantyhose.’

Karl picked up a pair of high quality black stockings from the dresser and draped one incongruously over his shoulder before tying Mia’s hands behind her back with the other. He used all the stocking’s length, stretching it so that the young woman’s wrists were tied so tightly together that she could not twist them in the loops without pain and numbness. There were no loose ends for Mia’s fingers to work on. Karl did the same for his prisoner’s legs, binding them with a piece of cord at mid-calf and cinching the ties between. Then he stood back and looked at her with satisfaction. Mia wondered what he was going to do with the other stocking. She rolled onto her side and lifted her head defiantly.

‘You won’t keep on getting away with this,’ she said. ‘I know it’s a cliche, but this can’t go on this way. You know you always slip up. And some day the police will be too close on your tail for you to get away from them.’

‘That’s exactly right, my dear,’ said Molly. She waved her arm peremptorily to stop Karl, who was gripping the other stocking menacingly in both hands and advancing on Mia. ‘There’s no need to gag Miss Chantal yet. You see, my dear young heroine, time is now of the essence. We’ve used up our welcome and we have to move on to other pastures. It’s too hot for us, if you want to look at it that way. And that means doing something quite affirmative about you and your friend Melody Hazard. And that little shop girl Jasmine Morris, if we ever run across her. But it’s you and Miss Hazard we’re most interested in. Heroines in melodramas might be rescued, but not in real life.’

Mia guessed that Molly was bluffing, but all the same her heart went cold. ‘Wh- what do you mean?’

‘I mean that it’s time for one more shipment, then we’ll get out of this country altogether. Catching sight of you in the city yesterday and following you here was a stroke of luck. We could have taken you last night. A forced window. A chloroform pad. Remember, you’ve had that before, courtesy of Karl here. But there was something missing. Or I should say "some one." Your friend Miss Hazard. I decided to wait, in case she turned up. Were you setting off to join her just now? What do you think she’ll do when you miss your appointment?’

‘She - she’ll warn the police.’

‘No, she won’t. I’ve sussed out your psychology, the two of you. You like going off and playing detective without your men-folk. That’s your Achilles heel. And that’s how we’ll get your friend. She’ll think something’s up, and she’ll come to investigate on her own. You’re the bait, Miss Chantal.’

‘You - you ...’

‘Bitch? Is that what you were going to say? It doesn’t matter. From this side, I think it’s obvious who’s holding all the cards. We’ll wait. We have plenty of time. The car’s out of sight. The view from the upper windows of this house is good. And if the police come we’ll have time to slip out the back. Taking you with us of course.’

Mia could not deny that Molly was depressingly accurate in her judgment. And as usual she was helpless to do anything about it. They had not tied her too stringently. There was no need. She could not get free, not bound with stockings in this way. Not was there any real need to gag her unless they wanted to ‘break her in’ as they had attempted to do during her previous captures. They had failed then. Molly had not yet given the order for Mia to be gagged. Perhaps she enjoyed their conversation, rubbing Mia’s face in the idea of her powerlessness. And Molly’s gloating was working. Mia was beginning to feel that she was coming to the end of her resources. She looked from one of her captors to the other and felt very, very alone. She lowered her head to the pillow with a faint sigh.

‘That’s good. Take the opportunity to get some rest while you’re moderately comfortable,’ said Molly in mock approval.

‘Lemme gag her now.’

‘Don’t be impatient, Karl. There’s plenty of time for that. But you can put her into a hogt�he won’t be able to move around much. � we’ll take it easy. There’s an interesting liquor cabinet in the family room. But you must stay on guard up here where you can see the street.’

Mia was rolled onto her face. Karl substituted the piece of cord tied around her legs for a strip of torn pillowcase�which he wound�more securely �around the young woman’s slim ankles. � He then cinched the cloth wrappings with one end of the cord. Mia’s knees were bent back up behind her and Karl began to tie the other end of the cord around her wrists.

As he pulled�Mia’s ankles towards her hands, Molly spoke�quickly. ‘Don’t make the hogtie too fierce. She has to be able to walk if we need to get to the car.�You can have fun with her�later. I might even join in.’ She winked at Mia knowingly.

‘Thank you,’ said Mia softly. Molly did not appear to notice the irony in her voice.

Karl allowed a good two feet of cord between Mia’s hands and her ankles. It was effective enough to keep her lying quietly because it made movement difficult, especially when she wanted to change her position by rolling over on to her other side. Molly and Karl drifted out of the door. Mia knew that if she attempted to call for help she would be gagged immediately. She lay still, alone with her fears.

The bedside clock slowly ticked away the minutes in the stillness of the house. An hour later Mia, her dress rumpled by turning from one side to the other, heard a sound at the door. It was Karl. Without a word he approached her, a large white handkerchief already folded into a three-inch bandage in his hands. Mia attempted to sit up but the ties at her ankles stopped her.

‘Time to shut you up,’ said Karl, as though he was making an observation about the weather.

Mia lifted her head. There was no point in fighting or trying to scream.

‘Is someone coming?’

‘Never you mind.’

Karl sat on the edge of the bed. Placing the handkerchief across his knees, he reached down to Mia’s throat and undid the silk scarf fluffed there. When it came away, he shook it out, bunched it up in his hand, and stuffed it into Mia’s mouth. She accepted the gag quietly, though the taste and smell of her own sweat put her teeth on edge. Karl reached the handkerchief over Mia’s head and drew the broad band into her mouth between her jaws. He snugged it firmly in place and tied off a double knot at the back of her neck under her dark hair. Then he turned and left as softly as he had entered. Mia was alone again, but the fact that she was now gagged suggested that she would not be alone much longer.

*

Melody’s plans for that day were the reverse of Mia’s schedule. By lunchtime she remembered the coming evening out and decided to return to Tilly’s house. She was wearing a smart business suit - a light skirt and a well-worn tweed jacket over a cream silk blouse. But it was a special evening, to be with her new friends Mia and Miles deVille and Brod, and she wanted to change into something more glamorous for the occasion. It was a quiet day. Few women seemed to be buying clothes that week. So, leaving the temp in charge of the boutique, Melody caught the public transport out to the suburb. The street outside Tilly’s house was empty, asleep in the mid-afternoon sun. Melody almost ran to the door. She was looking forward to a hot shower before changing into the silk dress she had laid out for the evening.

When she was halfway up the stairs she heard a crash and the sound of breaking glass. It came from Mia’s room, but Mia was out on the town somewhere. Was it the stray cat? Tilly sometimes allowed it in the house. Melody continued up the stairs, ‘Puss, puss ...?’ But instead of an answering miaow there came a frantic human cry.

‘Melody, get away from here! It’s a trap. Don’t worry about me. Warn the others!’

It was Mia’s voice and she was obviously in trouble. Melody paused, torn between staying to help her friend and the practical need to flee the house and warn the police. She turned and began to descend the stairs as fast as she could. But the few seconds of indecision took the choice out of her hands. As Melody reached the atrium, a figure appeared in the doorway to the dining room.

‘Well, well. Melody Hazard. We meet again, and so soon.’

It was Molly the Gun, and true to her sobriquet a pistol was in her hand. This time Melody noticed that it was a small short barrelled revolver. And, as usual, it was pointed straight at her. Without another word, Molly indicated with a slight movement of the weapon that Melody should turn and retrace her steps. As she obeyed, with Molly close behind pressing the pistol barrel into her back, Karl appeared at the top of the stairs.

‘We were expecting you to arrive later than this, closer to evening when the shadows are long and give good cover. But no matter. Karl saw you coming up the street so we were ready.’

Karl stepped aside with an exaggerated bow and Melody was ushered into Mia’s room. Mia was sitting on the floor. Her hands were tied behind her by what looked like one of her silk stockings. A thick creased handkerchief that had obviously been used to gag her hung loose around her neck. On the floor by the window lay a wooden table, a phone and a broken flower vase. Melody ran to her friend and knelt beside her. She found that Mia’s ankles were also tied and that a piece of cord attached them to her wrists in a loose hogtie.

‘Are you all right?’

‘As much as can be expected,’ answered Mia with a weary smile. ‘They haven’t hurt me, if that’s what you mean. I tried to warn you, but I couldn’t get the gag off in time. And now that you’re here it feels unpleasantly like ...’

‘You never said a truer word, kid,’ interrupted Molly. ‘Now that you have very touchingly asked after your friend’s health, and we have the sweet and fuzzies out of the way, please stand and move over here. That’s right. Karl, make Miss Chantal quiet again. And don’t do a sloppy job this time.’

Melody watched as Karl put the gag back on Mia. He took up a red silk scarf that lay on the floor - the sodden material had clearly been used as a gag already - and packed it into the young woman’s mouth. Then he untied the handkerchief from around her neck and retied it between her jaws. Melody winced in sympathy as Mia’s gag was jerked cruelly tight so that her jaws were held open and the wad pressed deeper into her mouth. Mia made several choking noises then, with an intense exercise of will, stopped the gagging reflex. The effort brought tears to her eyes.

‘I don’t think there’s any need to discommode you for the time being, my dear,’ hissed Molly in Melody’s ear. ‘I’ll make a little bargain with you. We won’t hurt Miss Chantal, in exchange for your cooperation. She’ll be our hostage for your good behaviour. You must walk quietly with us. Do you think you can do that?’

Melody nodded. Her mouth was dry and her palms were damp with fear.

‘But just so you fully realise the hopeless position you are both in, Karl will tie your hands.’ Molly took Melody by the shoulders and turned her around so that her back was to the man. ‘Tie the cord under the cuffs of her jacket,’ she ordered. ‘That way, no one will notice unless they walk very close.’

Karl turned Melody’s hands palm to palm and tied her wrists together quickly and efficiently with several turns of cord. A wave of frustration and fear passed through Melody and she almost fainted.

‘A little touch of shock? I certainly didn’t take you to be a swooning heroine. ’ said Molly. ‘Very well, I suppose you can sit for a moment.’ And Melody was led to the dresser stool and pushed onto it.

‘Karl. Next phase of the plan.’

Karl exited but returned almost immediately carrying a large suitcase. He laid it on the floor, opened it out, and looked up inquiringly at Molly.

‘Blindfold her first,’ said Molly coldly with a nod towards Mia.

Melody watched as Mia was tightly blindfolded. Karl used a scarf taken from the dresser as a pad over Mia’s eyes and wound a stocking twice about the young woman’s head to hold it in place. The material stretched into a broad double band across her eyes. Melody watched aghast as Karl easily lifted Mia in his arms and deposited her in the suitcase. Mia was arranged on her side with her knees folded towards her chest, her arms stretched by the hogtie so that she could barely move them.

‘Time to move,’ said Molly abruptly. ‘What could be more natural than two women arm in arm with a chauffeur behind carrying their luggage?’

The sharp hiss of a zip fastener sounded as Karl closed and sealed the suitcase around his victim.

‘She’ll suffocate in there,’ Melody cried frantically.

‘Not if we’re quick. Walk smartly, my dear, and your friend will soon be able to breathe again.’

Melody needed no urging. As Molly had planned, they left the house and walked down the street, which was still quiet, to a laneway where the Mercedes stood parked under a tree at the furthest end. The familiar lumpy figure of Hudson sat behind the wheel. Melody was pushed into the back seat. Molly slipped in beside her. Karl in the meantime opened the trunk and through the rear window Melody saw him place the suitcase inside and close the lid. A moment later the vehicle was purring softly through the suburban streets.

Melody was in a near frantic state. ‘Now she really will suffocate if you leave her like that! I’ve done everything you’ve asked. And I’ll tell you where the diamond is too. Only please get Mia out of there!’

Molly looked at Melody with a twisted smile. ‘Very loyal to your friends, aren’t you. That comment about the diamond is interesting. Another loose end. All right. Hudson, when you find a quiet lane pull over and we’ll make Miss Chantal a little more comfortable. But, in the meantime Miss Hazard, there’s a price to pay.’

Molly opened her handbag and fished out a handful of neatly folded handkerchiefs. She shook two of them out, then bunched one in her hand and raised it to Melody’s lips. ‘Open.’ Melody complied. The wadded handkerchief seemed to fill her mouth completely and she gagged and tried to turn her head away. Molly chuckled. ‘You should be getting used to this by now.’ The other handkerchief was folded into a broad bandage and tied over Melody’s mouth pressing uncomfortably against her teeth. She was gagged almost the same way that Mia had been silenced earlier by Karl. As the knot was made fast at the back of her neck, Molly added the usual warning. ‘If you succeed in getting this off you’ll be gagged tighter, understand?’ Melody did not at first deign to respond, but when Molly stroked her cheek with the barrel of the revolver Melody vigorously nodded her head yes.

A couple of minutes later, Hudson found a suitable empty side street and parked the Mercedes as far from prying eyes as possible. They disembarked, Molly holding Melody painfully by one of her arms while Karl opened the trunk. Karl leaned in and with two swift movements unzipped the suitcase and threw the cover fully open. The space in the trunk was large enough to allow two suitcases of that size. There was a slight movement from within and Melody saw Mia’s head lift a little. She guessed that her friend was taking long deep breaths and her heart went out to her.

‘You too,’ said Molly. And Melody was lifted by Karl and placed on the open lid of Mia’s suitcase so that she was sitting beside her friend. Karl rolled her onto her side and bound her ankles together with a piece of rope taken from a pile in a corner of the trunk. He then bound a scarf over Melody’s eyes. ‘You can ride the rest of the way together,’ said Molly as the lid closed over them.

*

As the Mercedes accelerated, Melody tried to assess their position. It was pretty hopeless. Arms bound behind their backs, legs bound, their mouths gagged, their eyes blindfolded. But why blindfold us, when we’re packed into a car’s trunk? It was gratuitous cruelty. There were too many questions unanswered in this mystery. Where were they being taken? Would she be questioned again about the diamond? Who was Molly the Gun? Who was Murgatroyd, the man supposed to be the owner of the diamond, rightfully or not? And what had really happened to the diamond, the disappearance of which the whole underworld seemed to have pinned on her?

It didn’t seem fair to take two young women in the prime of their lives and hold them captive. Bound and gagged, like in a nineteenth-century music-hall melodrama. But it was terribly real. She felt the pressure of the cords at her wrists, holding her hands palm to palm immoveably. And thank goodness she was wearing the thick jacket that cushioned the tight loops of cord now imprisoning her arms above the elbows. She had been through a lot of this before, but it did not make it any easier. Mia was in the same predicament, and she was wearing a light silk dress without sleeves. They had been bound quickly and efficiently. No frills this time. Not held in yards and yards of rope as they had been when first kidnapped by the gang. It was a professional job all the same.

Melody could not move her arms, but maybe she could do something about her gag. It was a cloth gag, one handkerchief stuffed into her mouth - it was now a saliva saturated wad resting heavily on her tongue - and another handkerchief tightly covering her lower face and jaw below her nose. The warning that she would be gagged even tighter if she worked this one loose had no power over her. Melody knew that when they wanted to do it, those horrible people would gag her in something quite inflexible. Like tape, or those custom-made leather jobs. She remembered how effective they were and knew that in time she could expect more of the same treatment.

Moving her tongue and her jaw together, Melody slowly pushed the bolus of wet cotton out of her mouth past the covering cloth, which she managed to make slip down to her chin so that it was partially between her teeth. When the wadding at last fell away, it was easier to work the rest of the gag over her chin. Melody thought of rubbing it against the inner edge of the suitcase cover on which she lay. The teeth of the case’s zip snagged on the cotton and helped pull it from her face. And she found that she could do the same with her blindfold, an unexpected bonus. As the blindfold came free, Melody blinked her eyes against the illumination of a trunk light. It was a very dull lamp, but it was enough for Melody to become aware of her friend’s plight.

Mia Chantal lay quietly within the open suitcase, her body rocking gently with the car’s movements just as Melody’s did. She had been gagged by Karl more tightly than Melody’s treatment at Molly’s hands, and from the straining of Mia’s chest Melody knew that her friend was in trouble.

Melody raised herself up as far as she could, held as she was by her own bonds and the lid of the trunk that brushed against her head. ‘Mia love, I’ve got my gag off. And I think I know how to help you. Can you turn your head towards me? I can’t lean over that far.’

Mia nodded in understanding. Slowly, with exhausting effort, hampered by having her ankles and hands tied together, Mia worked herself onto her back and rolled over so that she and Melody now lay face to face.

‘That’s good,’ said Melody. ‘Now �raise you head up a little.�Yes. Hold it there.’

Melody placed her lips against Mia’s cheek as though kissing her. But instead she tried to grip the cloth that was tied between her friend’s jaws. It took several attempts because the gag was embedded into the corner’s of Mia’s mouth.

Melody worked her teeth into the cloth and began to pull down. Mia helped as much as she could by pressing her face against Melody’s in the opposite direction. At last the tie was dragged painfully over Mia’s chin where it fell loose about her neck. �With a retching sound, Mia turned her head away from Melody and ejected the gag. There followed a fit of coughing.

When she was breathing properly again, Mia croaked, ‘My God Melody, you’re a lifesaver. The gag slipped into the back of my throat and I couldn’t get at it with my tongue. I was expecting to choke any moment.’

‘Just part of the service,’ said Melody lightly. But she was overcome with relief that Mia was all right and her eyes stung with tears.

‘I don’t think there’s anything we can do about our bonds,’ said Mia. ‘I don’t expect you can get at them with your teeth like you did with the gag. The rope’s too tight and unyielding. And you can’t see to find the knots anyway.’

‘Actually I can see. I got my blindfold off too. Turn your head back towards me like you did before and I’ll have a go at yours.’

With a faint whimper, Mia obeyed. It did not take Melody long to find a grip on one edge of the blindfold. The stocking had been folded into a broad band across Mia’s face, and it was not as tight as the gag had been. Mia blinked. ‘I didn’t know there was a light in here. It helps to make this cramped place a little bearable.’

‘At least we can talk,’ said Melody. ‘We haven’t had a chance to debrief each other about our house-in-the-country abduction. Some things happened there that have me wondering.’

‘Like what?’

‘Well, for one thing, who is that woman they call Molly the Gun?’

Mia grimaced. ‘I’d never met her until then. And I tell you, you don’t want to meet a woman like that. Miles told me about her when he was explaining Murgatroyd’s criminal empire. She’s his right hand woman. Her real name is Molly Fusil. She’s what Miles calls a lapsed Spanish aristocrat. She has a fetish about power, and the hand gun is her favourite weapon. Like a knife is Snedley’s - that’s Karl to you. Calling herself Molly the Gun is her little joke. "Fusil" is Spanish for gun. She’s a dangerous, cold hearted woman, in many ways a mirror image of Snedley. They have a lot in common, though she’s definitely the boss.’

‘I see.’ Melody shivered, though it was very warm with their two bodies crowded into the small space of the trunk, and they were both sweating in their ropes. ‘And what is Murgatroyd’s empire?’

‘Nothing petty, like stealing a diamond. Though the Duck’s Egg Diamond is a special case. No. Murgatroyd deals in hard drugs, prostitution and, would you believe, white slavery? That’s not just an urban myth. Melody, we’re in real trouble. Think about what Molly said back at the country mansion. Little jokes about training us and making us obedient. She sees us as candidates to become the playthings of some wealthy international sharks. If I’m not mistaken, Molly plans to ship us out. And the discomforts we’re going through now are nothing like the horror that’s ahead of us. Melody, I’m really scared.’

‘You’re not the only one,’ Melody answered. She choked back a sob. ‘Is there nothing we can do? Couldn’t we work on each other’s ropes and get free?’

‘We could, but we’re not going anywhere, trapped here in this trunk. And they’d only tie us up again. Feel these ropes. We’re in the power of professional criminals who know how to tie knots so there’s no hope of getting loose. Most of the time anyway. I wish I’d thought of wearing that belt this morning!’

‘The one with the blade in it?’

‘Yes. A small flick knife it was. That’s how I got free and was able to hide from them. When they loaded you and Jasmine Morris into the van, I was watching through a window of the cellar.’

‘Well, I don’t like lying here just waiting to be a lamb to the slaughter. Mia, roll over so your back’s to me,’ said Melody decisively. ‘At least I can try to loosen those ropes on your arms and make you a little more comfortable. If I can do it with my hands tied palm to palm that is.’

‘You’re a darling,’ said Mia. ‘Then I’ll try to do the same for you. There’s no feeling left in my arms.’

It took a long time in the cramped space for the two women to edge themselves back to back so that Melody could reach the knots at Mia’s upper arms. Mia had to raise herself on her hands as far as she could against the lid of the trunk. Melody thought her wrists would break with the effort to stretch her fingers against Mia’s ropes. But at last some progress was made. Melody picked at the knots patiently until one or two loosened. There were too many knots cinching the rope for Melody to get to every one, but the pressure in Mia’s arms slackened and she sank back into the suitcase with a soft groan.

‘That’s better. I can feel circulation coming back.’

‘Does it hurt?’

‘Sure, Honey. But it’s better than lying for more hours tied this way. Once again I’ve got to thank you, Melody. I thought I had control of myself, but I was wrong. You’re keeping your head better than me, this time around.’

‘I haven’t panicked yet, but believe me it’s just a matter of time,’ Melody replied. She was going to say something more when the big car began to bump and sway. ‘Oh no, not another unsealed road.’

‘Gets monotonous doesn’t it? We must be coming to the end of our journey. I hardly care what they do with us. It will be a relief just to be out of this trunk!’

The vehicle was beginning to slow down. It came to a stop.

‘Now we’re in for it!’ said Mia. ‘Good talking to you, honey.’

And the lid of the trunk was thrown open.

‘Looky here, they’ve got their gags and blindfolds off,’ cried Karl. But he chuckled. ‘No sweat. You kids aren’t goin nowhere,’ he added gloatingly.

Molly came into view from behind Karl. ‘Put their gags and blindfolds back on.’

‘Sure thing.’

It did not take long for Melody and Mia to be silenced and plunged into darkness again. The damp wadded cloths were retrieved from the floor of the trunk and stuffed again into their mouths. The handkerchiefs that had been used to tie the gags in place became extra packing, and dry black silk cloths were bound about their faces and jaws. Both women made faint retching sounds as Karl pulled the knots very tight. The blindfolds came next. Once they were deprived of speech and sight, their legs were freed, and Mia and Melody were stood up on what felt like sandy ground and frog-marched along a track of some sort. Molly held Melody tightly by an arm. Karl followed escorting Mia the same way.

Melody breathed in a wave of salt laden air. She could hear the gentle distant sussuration of the sea. We’re on the coast now. Are we going to be shipped out, literally? Their feet clattered on wooden boards. There was the sound of a door opening. They were led into what Melody guessed was a beach cottage. But after several steps there was a pause, another door opened, and when they were bade to walk again she felt an uprush of air and found herself negotiating some sort of steps downwards. Oh no, this place has a cellar too.

She was made to sit in a wooden chair and ropes were bound liberally about her, across her lap and over the seat of the chair, around her waist, and in a criss-cross between her breasts and around her upper body, fixing her to the back of the chair with her bound arms trapped between her body and the chair. Her ankles were tied together and lashed to a chair leg, and her legs were tied above her knees. She guessed that Mia was getting the same attention. She could hear her friend grunting through her gag, and there was the sound of a chair creaking.

‘That will hold our pretty prisoners,’ said Molly in satisfaction. ‘You won’t have long to wait, my dear,’ she added, addressing Mia. ‘If you don’t struggle against your ropes, you won’t hurt yourself.’ The sound of the creaking chair stopped. ‘That’s better. Just, aha, make yourselves comfortable.’ Molly’s chuckling faded and the two captives heard feet scraping on the wooden steps. A door slammed shut.

Mia and Melody were alone. The only sound was the distant rolling of the surf and the whistling of the sea wind. Melody tugged experimentally at her bonds, but there was no loosening them. With a sigh she rested her head against the back of the chair and did her best to relax, making her body soft. It did not have much effect in easing the constriction and pain she felt.

Molly was good to her word. After about twenty minutes Melody and Mia heard the door open and their captors were with them again.

‘Precious merchandise needs special care,’ said Molly. ‘Untie Miss Hazard and let her tidy up. When you’re done, we’ll let Miss Chantal have her turn. They have to be prepared properly.’

They had been through all of it before. The removal of their gags, a false sense of freedom as arms and wrists were untied, a supported walk to the bathroom (this one was cleaner than those they had used earlier), five minutes for a quick shower, then a closely watched return to the place where they were being held.

This time Melody was not bound. But Molly watched her where she sat, a supercilious grin on her face, while Mia was freed and led out by Karl. Molly said nothing, and there was nothing that Melody wanted to say to the awful woman. Mia returned ten minutes later with Karl at her back, her hair damp from the shower. With feigned solicitude, Karl invited her to sit in the chair where she had been tied. Mia glanced at Melody, who was struck by the look of hopelessness on her face.

‘Very good. Like clockwork,’ said Molly. ‘Next step, Karl. Tie their hands. Miss Melody first. No rough stuff, but secure.’

At Karl’s insistent nod, Melody rose and presented her hands behind her back. The man tied her wrists together in alternate criss cross loops and cinched them between. The final double knots were all that held her. There were no multiple knots as there had been before. Perhaps there’ll be an opportunity to work free, she thought. She was told to sit, and her ankles were tied and cinched, followed by her legs above the knees. Then her arms were tied above the elbows, but not so tight as to cause pain. While Karl bound Mia in the same way, Melody tested her ropes and found to her surprise that they resisted any attempts to loosen them.

‘Now comes an interesting experiment,’ said Molly with a broad grin. ‘You two have to be gagged of course. That goes without saying, pun intended.’ Karl chortled with laughter from the background. ‘But we have to ensure that neither of you choke on the long journey.’

‘Wh- what journey?’ asked Melody.

‘Don’t worry your pretty head about it. Take the lead of your friend. She’s not asking any questions. What you don’t know won’t hurt you.’

‘I don’t believe you.’

‘I’ll forgive you your curiosity. But now, Karl,’ she said, turning to her gangly minion, ‘Our two recruits need to be gagged in such a way that they are kept quiet but are a mite comfortable at the same time. No mouth packing. We’ll start with this talkative one.’

‘Sure, Boss.’

Under Molly’s instructions, Karl tore off a strip of three-inch wide medical adhesive tape and laid it on the table. Molly took a flimsy silk scarf that was already folded into a small rectangle and laid it on the centre of the band of tape. Karl took the tape by its ends and turned to Melody.

‘Do I have to hold you still, dear?’ asked Molly. Melody shook her head. ‘This way, you can’t loosen the tape by wetting it, because it’s already padded. And you won’t hurt your lips if you struggle against it.’

Karl applied the tape across her lips and mouth, smoothing it down to her cheeks on either side. He then pressed and smoothed the tape to her face just below her nose and over her chin. Melody found that her lips were cushioned by the silk pad while her mouth remained sealed. It was comfortable. The tape did not pull at her lips, and she was able to move them about a little, but it muffled her effectively. She quickly found that she had to breathe through her nose.

Melody watched while Mia’s lips were sealed in the same way. Then a large roll of silver duct tape was produced and Mia’s face was neatly taped under several layers from just below her nose to the tip of her chin, and from ear to ear. The same wasdone to Melody. It was tight, and impossible to budge. The bands of black silk that had been used on them earlier were then retied across their faces, further compacting the layers of tape. With a meaningful look at Molly, Karl left the cellar.

‘This is a calculated risk,’ observed Molly dispassionately. ‘You can breathe only through your noses, and you will be in narrow, confined spaces where asphyxiation is a possibility. We have a fifty-fifty success rate. You will find that it pays to relax and take your time breathing. Sleep as much as you can. Above all, give up hope of getting free or being rescued. Just behave like good little merchandise and wait it out.’

What does she mean? thought Melody in growing alarm. She did not have long to wait for the answer. With a loud creaking, two double doors opened in one wall of their prison, revealing that the cellar led directly into a garage beneath the house where the Mercedes now stood. But what was of immediate interest was the object that Karl wheeled in on a trolley. It was a large brass bound wooden trunk of the sort that Melody associated with scenes in detective movies from the theatre backstage. Such trunks were used for the storage and movement of costumes and props. In melodramatic films, however, these trunks were also used for the kidnapping of heroines. Melody knew with a sick feeling that this prop of fantasy was soon to become a reality for her and Mia.

Karl deposited the trunk on the floor and wheeled the trolley away. A moment later he reappeared with another trunk. Molly clucked as her two bound prisoners began to struggle frantically. Their efforts did little more than make the chairs in which they were sitting scrape slightly on the floor.

‘You’re getting the idea. Karl, demonstrate how these work.’

Karl unfastened the latches on one of the trunks, swung it open, and stepped back with a knowing smirk on his face.

‘Notice, my dears, how the interior is moulded to hold a human shape. It is lined with silk, the same kind used in coffins, so you will be relatively comfortable, but also quite unable to move. Incidentally, there will be a stopover midway through your journey where you will be transferred to coffins. I advise you not to struggle. You will only exhaust yourselves. And you’ll need all your energy and focus for breathing, if you don’t want to smother. I told you we have a fifty-fifty success rate with our recruits. That means half arrive DOA.’

Karl tilted one box onto its back so that the two halves lay wide open.

Melody realised that the person she heard screaming was herself, and that the sounds were all in her head. Mia was shaking her head and making frantic ‘nk,’ ‘nk’ sounds. This was going to be far worse than the occlusive leather helmets they had been forced to wear in the dockside house.

Tears sprang to her eyes as Melody watched Mia, struggling and kicking, picked up in Karl’s arms as easily as a doll and laid on her side in one half of a box. The lid was left open while Karl set out the second box for Melody. When it was her turn, Melody did her best not to panic.

As she was being carried by Karl across the room, she was able to see into the box where Mia lay, folded on her side. The shape of the silk-lined compartment fit snug around the small woman’s body. There was a moment’s eye contact between them, during which the two women recognised utter despair in the face of the other. Then Melody found herself looking down into the moulded interior of the box in which she was to be placed.

As Karl lowered her carefully into the box, Melody took slow steady breaths through her nose. The shaped mouldings wrapped around her body. Melody heard the dull clump and snap of the catches as the lid of Mia’s chest was closed. The last she saw before the lid of her box engulfed her were the faces of Karl and his mistress Molly Fusil staring intently down at her. Karl’s lips had the usual residue of spittle at the corners. Molly’s face was twisted into a triumphant, thin-lipped grin. She said something but the lid closed shut before Melody could understand the words.

Melody Hazard was plunged into unremitting darkness, so complete that she felt entombed.

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