Russian Roulette
By Otto
Chapter Three
Though it was only a few mile´s distance, it took Ivan some six hours to get back to his hideout. Despite being rather petite, Natalya weight some 110 lbs, and so he had to stop every few hundred meters. He couldn´t help admiring his bound and gagged captive: she was stringently tied and her mouth stuffed as thoroughly as he had been able to do, but still she tried to fidget. Sometimes, she obviously cried her lungs out, too, because now and then he could hear a faint moaning and gurgling from beneath the blanket. It was not before he nearly had reached his hut when exhaustion finally stopped her.
Soundless, Ivan entered his hut and carefully opened the secret room. Nadeshda was still there - for more than ten hours, he estimated, the girl had been sitting in her inconvenient position without any chance to mitigate it. She didn´t move or make a sound at all. Ivan couldn´t say if she was sleeping from exhaustion or had fainted, but he could tell from her constantly heaving bust that she breathed, and so he wasn’t worried.
Ivan sat Natalya in the other armchair, this making her cringe slightly, because the sitting position made the crotchrope cut even deeper into her labia. Ivan quickly fixed her to the armchair by some ropes he wound over her bundled body and the chair, then he loosened the knot sealing the blanket and freed her head.
A gust of sweat came to his nose and two blue eyes looked at him, fearful, but still defiant.
"Mmmmhhh! Hmmmmhhh!" The girl tried to communicate through her multiple gags.
"Shhh", Ivan whispered, "Nadeshda´s asleep."
Only now, Natalya recognized her lady´s maid in the other chait. Or, at least, she recognized a pair of big breasts and a vulva covered by a triangle of light brown hair between two extremely widespread legs. For a moment, she thought the girl had no head, then she realized it was bent backwards. This position seemed to be as uncomfortable as hers and at least she had the modesty of being wrapped in a blanket.
"Mmmph! Hrrrr! Uuhhmmmph!",she uttered, trying to make him free her from the stifling gag. The panties in her mouth were now soaking wet and the many layers of cloth made her breathing difficult. Her whole body, especially her most intimate part, hurt from the harsh binding and her effortless attempts to get free. She just wanted him to give her some water and to tie her in a more lenient position; her demands definitely had decreased.
Instead, Ivan went over to Nadeshda and began to gently caress the girl´s breasts. Nadeshda had indeed fainted during her fight against her ties and gag, so, she only awoke after some minutes. By then, her body had already reacted to Ivan´s hands. Her nipples were hard and she slightly squirmed in her seat.
"Mhm?", she moaned, then, she realized more and more what was going on. She tried to fidget, but Ivan once again started kissing her inner thighs. Since Nadeshda was totally exhausted - and still a bit disappointed about the interruption before - , she put up nearly no resistance against her body´s desires. This time, Ivan did not stop. He kissed her swollen sex, plucked on her labia with his lips and explored her with his tongue.
"Oohhhhmmmmm. Mhhhmmmmmm! Uhmmmmmm! Mmmhhhhmmmmmm!" Nadeshda groaned, her womb tried to move in a faster and faster way. This was it! The girl screamed and moaned into the panties filling her mouth and came closer to pleasures she had never experienced before, neither by another man nor by her own hands. Just before she reached the top, Ivan once again stopped.
"Mmhrrrr!" "No, please, get on, pleeaaaassssee!", she thought.
Ivan stood up and put his right hand on her sex.
"You want me to get on with this?", he asked, letting his fingers explore her wet inside.
"Mmmhhmmm! Mmmmhhmmm!", she uttered, slightly moving her head in a desperate attempt to nod emphatically.
"You want it, no matter what the consequences are?", he asked, withdrawing his hand a bit.
"Mmhhhmmmm! Hmmmmph!", Nadeshda responded and tried to press her pubic mound against his hand.
Ivan put his fingers to work again, with his left hand he loosened the shawl knotted to Nadeshda´s left ankle, allowing the girl to move her legs and to lift her head. When she raised her head, the blindfold fell and Nadeshda´s eyes fell on the wide-eyed gaze of Natalya who stared at her, blushing all over. Nadeshda blushed like a beetroot, too. Her mistress had seen all this being done to her - and her more than willing acceptance to it!
Embarrassed, she tried to pull away from Ivan´s hand, but he continued massaging her. With his left hand, he grabbed her hair and forced the girl to look directly at Natalya. She thrashed with her unbound legs, but to no avail.
"Uuhhmmmm! Mhpf! Nnnnnnngnnnngg!" It was too late. Nadeshda had been too aroused to regain enough self control. Sobbing and closing her eyes to her mistress, she lost the battle between shame and lust.
"Forgive me, mistress", the helpless girl thought before leaving herself to her desires. Moaning and squirming, she finally could not stand it any longer and just pressed her womb rhythmically against his hand. With a loud groan, she reached the peak of ecstasy, collapsing in her seat immediately after.
A minute later, Ivan was loosening her gag. He helped her to get the sodden knickers from her mouth. Nadeshda gasped and coughed, then she sobbed from embarrassment and sheer exhaustion. Ivan ungagged the perplexed Natalya, too.
"You sure have a lot to talk about, whilst I´m preparing supper", he said smiling, leaving his two captives alone.
***
Immediately after the butler had left them in total darkness, the three captives had tried to work on their bonds. This was not only a fruitless task, since their handcuffs were of solid iron, it was also an attack on modesty. Being forced to embrace Tamara from the left and the right, Giselle´s and Cherie´s hands were bound near the other´s pubic area and their bodies pressed against it. Each wiggling of her fingers made Giselle involontarily touch Cherie´s pubic hair or her labia and she felt the same done to her by Cherie. Giselle moaned with disgust. Tamara, who had at least the luxury of being able to move somewhat, suddenly panicked.
"Mhhhrrrrr! Ooohhuuuuummmmmmm!Mph! Mph! Mph!" The Russian girl screamed into her mouthfilling gag. She sure had the worst stuffing in her mouth: Cherie´s panties were not only the most substantial of the three pairs, whilst Giselle changed her knickers every week, Cherie did so only once a month.
"The taste, combined with Cherie´s strong perfume and my sweat, must be really dreadful", Giselle thought. "And besides, at least we are used to such a predicament, thanks to her."
In addition to screaming into her gag, Tamara squirmed and fidgeted and kicked with her unbound legs. The two French girls were pushed and pulled from one corner to the other. At least, both pressed closer against the frantic Tamara and slung their legs around hers. The Russian increased fighting, but the two managed to wrestle her to the ground, where the pillory forced them to lie side by side together. Still, she squirmed and screamed her lungs out.
"Mmmmmhhhhhuuuuuuuhhhmmmmmm! Nnnnnnnnnnnng! Ohhhmmmmmmmmm!"
All the three naked girls were now covered with sweat, this making it even more difficult to hold Tamara still. After what seemed to be ages, her groans died down and her flailing stopped. She whimpered helplessly into her gag and trembled heavily.
Despite that fact that she was their enemy, right now they needed all their strength for enduring what lay ahead of them. Giselle and Cherie cuddled closer to Tamara, who, still sobbing, turned to her side. This pressed her breasts and loins against Giselle´s, whilst Cherie’s bound hands kept their pubic mounds from too close contact. After some time, she calmed down. Since the room was quite cold and their bodies´ warmth the only heating they had, the three sweaty, naked girls stayed in a close embrace until even the pillory pressing on their necks and lasting on their shoulders could not prevent them from falling asleep from sheer exhaustion.
***
Whilst preparing some soup, Ivan had overheard his captives talking. First, Nadeshda had stammered some excuses, then they had told each other what had happened so far. Ivan noticed that Natalya didn´t mention the fact she was stark naked beneath the blanket and that from time to time she let out a sigh or a groan. Obviously, sitting with a tightly applied crotchrope was really uncomfortable.
He entered the room with a tray that contained three bowls with soup and a bottle of wine.
"Right, my dears, supper´s ready. Nadeshda, I´ll free you, so you can feed your mistress. I will keep her bound, since we will leave within a few hours." Natalya looked at him with dismay, but she remained silent. At least, if he kept her tightly wrapped, her nudity remained covered.
Ivan freed Nadeshda´s arms and she began feeding the soup and some wine to Natalya. Then, she ate and drank herself.
After the meal, he let Nadeshda do the dishes, whilst he explained his plan of replacing her with Marion by midnight. Nataly didn´t talk much, she suffered from another problem she sure would not discuss with a man. She had to relieve herself.
Carefully, Ivan gagged her again like she had been before, only replacing her knickers with Oksana´s before stuffing her mouth with them.
Nadeshda suddenly spoke: "S-Sir, I b-b-beg your pardon-"
"What is it, my dear?", Ivan asked gently.
"I-I have to-to pee. May I just go outside for a minute, please?", she asked shyly, slightly redenning.
"Well - no. It´s just too cold for you in your nakedness. But, we have got everything you need in the house."
He pulled a chamber pot from under the bed and gave it to the girl. Nadeshda wanted to go to the other room, but he said
"No! Stay where I can see you." Blushing all over, the embarrassed Nadeshda obeyed. The sound made Natalya groan and squirm.
"Oh, of course, you are allowed, too", Ivan said, undoing the knots holding Natalya on the chair. She shook her head and moaned quietly, but Ivan just made her stand up and removed the blanket.
Nadeshda gasped when she saw how thoroughly Natalya was trussed up - and that she was stark naked.
"Uuhhhmm! Uhmmmuhmmm!", Natalya kept on protesting. Nadeshda just stared at her thrust out breasts and on the tight rope that disappeared within her blond thatch of pubic hair.
"Nadeshda, dear, please undo your mistresses´ crotchrope and help her using the pot."
Nervously and with insecure fingers, Nadeshda loosened the tight knots of the now wet rope, trying not to pull too much on it and also trying not to touch Natalya´s private parts. After some minutes, she could pull the rope from between Natalya´s legs, who let out a sigh of relief.
"Oooouuuuhhhhmmmmm!" Nadeshda put the pot behind her and wanted to help her squatting, but Natalya stiffened and shook her head no.
"This is straining my gentleness", Ivan said. "Just pee or I´ll show you how tight I can tie a crotchrope if I really want!"
Blushing and closing her eyes in self-denial, Natalya allowed Nadeshda to assist her crouching and relieved her bladder. Satisfied, Ivan let the crotchrope lying on the floor and just sat her back in the armchair.
"All right, time to take care of you, so that we two can go."
Despite her pleading, he tied Nadeshda´s arms to the rests of the other chair, again using rope and scarves. Slowly, he stuffed Natalya´s still damp knickers into the naked girl´s mouth, enjoying her futile resistance and soft moaning. Again, he completed the gag with a cleave and another cloth over that. Instead of blindfolding her, he took a piece of wet leather and tied it over her gag.
Nadeshda moaned questioningly, but Ivan knew that once it had dried, the leather would shrink and put extra pressure on her gag. It would be virtually impossible for her to slip off her gag without help. Satisfied, he went to bed to get at least some sleep before their departure.
At midnight, Ivan got up and prepared for his trip. He wrapped Natalya in the blanket again, then he loaded her on the horse. Then, he came back and took Natalya´s still damp crotchrope and put it in his belt. He again took the shawl and tied the barely resisting girl´s ankles and blindfolded her like he had done before.
"Just to keep you occupied", he said, carefully applying the crotchrope to the helpless girl, firmly, but not really tight. She squirmed slightly and moaned, but he just left. Ivan knew, that she would be irritated by that rope, but that on the other hand she couldn´t move enough to get some fun out of it. It would just add to her helplessness.
Having reached the palace, Ivan heaved his bundled captive over his shoulder and approached the main house. Natalya only squirmed a bit, seeing no chance in putting up a fight. Since he had worked here as a boy, he knew only too well how to get inside unseen. He also remembered that the guest rooms were at the second floor. He sneaked upstairs and listened carefully at the doors.
Bingo! Behind a small chamber´s door, he could hear a quiet snore and he could see the form of Marions´ female accomplice on the bed. That meant, Marion was behind the next door, in the big and luxurious sleeping room.
In absolute silence, Ivan slipped inside. He could see a lovely and somehow familiar sight: Marion slept in the nude. He smiled and carefully put Natalya to the ground. Always taking careful looks at the sleeping beauty at the bed, he unwrapped her from the blanket, pulled her to the side and held his index finger to his lips: "Shh!"
The frightened girl nodded. He had told her before, that, if she tried to warn anyone, he still would have enough time to kill her. Ivan draped the blanket on the floor, then he approached the bed. Looking around, he saw something white lying atop of her clothes - Marions knickers.
"Perfect", Ivan thought. He took them and balled them in his right hand. Then, he carefully put some prepared leather thongs and cloths on the nightstand and put a rag with a giant knot in it in his left. Marion lay on her back, sleeping. He took a deep silent breath, then he jumped on the bed and kneeled on the girl´s arms. Before Marion could even utter a sound, he had stuffed the knickers deep into her mouth, pushed the knotted cloth between her lips and tied it off tight at her neck.
Quickly, he spun her on her belly, sat on her legs and tied her wrists and elbows with two leather thongs. It was not before he had finished these knots, that the drowsy Marion started squirming and uttering small, gurgling sounds through her gag. Ivan took a pillow, removed the case and pulled it over Marion´s head, followed by a rag he tied over the lower part of her face, cutting off nearly all sounds the girl could make.
Whilst binding her legs at the knees and ankles, he listened carefully. Obviously the girl next door hadn´t heard a thing.
Ivan wrapped a long, doubled up thong around her waist, pulled the loose ends through the noose and pulled tight. With some difficulties, he pushed the dangler between the flailing girls´ thighs from the backside and tucked it through her waist rope, right under her navel. Bringing the loose ends back between her legs, he pulled.
"Mhhhuuummmmpf! Uuuuhhhmmmmm! Nnnnnng!", the gagged girl commented on this, accompanied by heavy, but useless squirming.
When the ropes had sunk deeply between her labia and buttocks, Ivan tied one end to her ellbow ties, the other end was fixed to her ankles, leaving her in a hogtie.
He grabbed his trussed up prey and put her on the blanket, wrapping her in it. Marion squirmed slightly and he could hear her screaming into her gags. Quickly, he took a look to the next room. The maid was still sleeping. Satisfied, he now turned his attention to the naked, bound and gagged Natalya who watched him with widened eyes. Gently, he put her on the bed and freed her from her bonds, leaving only her hands bound by the silk scarf. And, for good reason, the gag stayed on. Natalya would need a few minutes to completely get free, giving him enough time to escape if she tried to betray him.
"Good luck", he whispered and, picking up the thoroughly wrapped Marion, he left, leaving the frightened girl alone.
***
When dawn came, Giselle realized that at least some light came through a hole in the ceiling of their prison. It was just enough to see vague silhouettes of things, but it was better than the total blackness before. Giselle looked at the walls - and suddenly, she gasped.
"Mhmpf!" "Mhmm?"
Beside her, Tamara came to life and cuddled towards her, trying to get some more warmth. Annoyed, Giselle mmphed and jerked her head towards the opposite wall.
"Uuhhmmmpf! Ghmmm! Mmmmmm!"
Giselle nearly choked trying to speak through Tamara´s panties stuffing her mouth. It was frustrating! There, on a hook near the ceiling, hung a bunch of keys - the keys to their handcuffs and the pillory!
It took the gagged girl some minutes before her companions had understood what she was intending. First, they had to get up again. It took several efforts - and much, much rubbing and squirming of the three naked bodies tied so close together - before they were upright and could step over to the wall.
"Hrrruhhmmmm!", Cherie groaned with frustration: the keys hung just five inches above their heads.
"Mmmph!" Suddenly, Tamara intervened. She made the others step back a bit and stretched her leg. Wider and wider she stretched it, until her toes finally got in contact with the bunch of keys. Then, she slipped and the three entangled girls fell on the floor.
Cursing through their gags, they looked at the wall. The keys were gone! This could only mean that they were lying somewhere on the floor! They squirmed and tried to look. After a break from exhaustion, Cherie found the keys. Moaning with relief, they freed their wrists from the cuffs. With some difficulties, Cherie even managed to open the lock of the pillory. The three ached and massaged their necks, when it finally came off.
Immediately, they reached for their gags, pulled the cloths from their mouths and spat out the sodden used knickers that had gagged them for such a long time. After some coughing and retching, Giselle tried to unlock the cell door. None of the keys fit.
"Shit! They´re only for the cuffs!"
"Those bastards!", Cherie cried, "all this humiliation, the gagging, the stripping and the pillory - they just did it for fun! We´re locked anyway!" She sobbed. Tamara joined and finally, the three girls stood there, embraced each other and cried.
Then, Tamara seemed to have regained some of her former strength.
"Perhaps, we can overpower the next person approaching here. At least, they do not know we´re free."
Cherie looked through the keyhole, whilst Tamara reluctantly reached for her knickers that had previously gagged Giselle, but decided against putting the damp silk back on. The French girl preferred to stay naked, too.
After a while, Cherie hissed "Shh! Someone´s coming!"
Indeed, they heard female laughter and gossip.
"Some maids", Cherie whispered. Then, she shouted: "Hello, out there! Please, come over!"
The three maids slowly approached the door.
"There´s someone inside the cellar", one of them said.
"Yes, it´s us! This was meant to be a joke, but they have forgotten us! We´re inside this chamber for some hours, now!" Cherie did her best to persuade them and after some decisions, they heard the key turn inside the lock.
When the door finally opened, Tamara and Giselle reached out, grabbed the three totally surprised girls and pulled them inside, whilst Cherie closed the door again. Meanwhile, Tamara held two girls with one arm around each of their necks, Giselle held the third in a Nelson style grip. They squirmed and tried to scream, but their captors just increased the pressure on their throats so only some croaking came out.
"Right, stop fighting! Otherwise, we´ll have to kill you! Did you get that?", Cherie asked in a voice as harsh as she could manage.
After some seconds, the girls stopped flailing and squirming. Tamara and Giselle released them. The maids looked frightened at their naked captors. None of them dared to say a word. Their job was to serve Lady Oksana, not to develop any bravery.
Giselle noticed that none of the girls seemed to be taller than some five feet. Two brown-haired busty girls seemed to be twin sisters, whilst number three had long blonde hair. They obviously were plain farmers´ girls, young and innocent.
"Right. Strip! And I mean everything!"
Giselle wondered at how fast Tamara had found herself back to her former role as the ruthless leader. Was this the same woman, that, only a few hours ago, had literally gone mad with sheer fear and sobbed helplessly in hers and Cheries´ arms? She understood: the more power Tamara had, the greater was her attitude of sovereignity. But being stripped off her superiority - sometimes literally - made her turn into a trembling, fearful bundle.
The maids had taken off their dresses and boots, standing there only in their chemises and gartered stockings.
"I said everything!", Tamara repeated, Her grey eyes once again ice cold. The fact that she stood taller than the maids by some seven inches and somehow even her nakedness obviously seemed frightening enough.
The three little ones obeyed. Indeed, the twins were quit buxom, but the blonde also had quite pleasingly sized breasts.
Cherie took the handcuffs and bound their hands behind their backs, then, she, Giselle and Tamara put on the chemises and dresses.
Since they were definitely taller than the maids, the skirts ended around their knees and were a bit inconvenient around the chest area, but sure it was much better than being nude.
Tamara ordered: "All right, let´s gag them!"
Despite some struggling, they managed to stuff the maids´ mouths with the discarded knickers and cleave-gagged them with the cloth strips formerly used to tie them.
Moaning and retching, the three naked girls tried to cope with having their throat and cheeks packed with another womans´ used underwear.
"Let´s make sure they´re not trying anything", Tamara ordered.
They tied each girl´s ankles to the opposite knees, using their stockings, forcing them to sit in an open triangle. Then, Tamara had found a hook, hanging from the ceiling by a heavy chain. They placed the girls side by side and pulled their tied hands behind, till Cherie could put the hook through the links of the handcuffs. Then, Tamara pulled. The maids had to stretch their bound arms and ached and moaned, but Tamara showed no mercy. She didn´t fix the chain before the girls were forced to sit bent forward, unable to bring their hands down, let alone reaching their gags or leg ties.
"Time to spend a visit to our kind hostess. Don´t mind, girls. Once our business is done, we´ll take care of you. Just relax and enjoy your day off!"
Tamara seemed to have fully recovered, but Giselle supposed that frightening the helpless maids was her way of compensating that she had been naked, gagged, bound and helpless before. She felt some pity for the three girls, but that would have to wait. Followed by some desperate, but faint mewing and groaning, they left the cellar, locking the door and taking the keys with them.
***
About the same time, Ivan reached his hideout. He had to hurry if he wanted to reach the English guys -Natalya had told him their names were Benson and Carlyle - just in time. By now, they had recognized the disappearance of Natalya for nearly twenty hours. Since they obviously hadn´t alarmed Marion and Vera - the girls wouldn´t have been sleeping soundly then - , Ivan thought that they had searched the forest until dusk and were entitled to continue by the dawn’s early light.
So, Ivan just dumped Marion on the bed, leaving her wrapped, trussed up and gagged.
Then, he turned his attention to the immobilized Nadeshda who squirmed in her bonds and made small sounds through her gags. He decided to give her a bit of a relieve from her position. Using two pieces of rope, he tied her knees to the armrests, taking care the knots were well out of reach from Nadeshda´s gloved fingers. Then, he loosened the shawl.
Raising her head, she looked at him with pleading, tearful eyes.
"Uuhhhmmmm! Mhhrrrrmmmmphh!"
The leather rag had dried completely, putting immense pressure on her thoroughly gagged mouth, and the crothrope had been a constant source of irritation and frustration. Weakly, she flailed about with her unbound lower legs.
Ivan put his hands on her big boobs, squeezing them gently.
"Sorry, my dear. I´ve got some money to earn. But in the evening, I´ll have enough time for you."
"Nnnnng! Mhmmmmmmm! Uhmmmmm!", she protested, obviously frightened by the prospect of having to spend more hours bound and gagged as she was. She thrashed about with her feet, bent forward in her seat and shook her head no.
Ivan seemed satisfied. Trying everything she wanted, she still could not free herself, though by now she could at least see and move her head. Just to make sure, Ivan took the shawl and tied a loose noose around her neck, fixing it to one of the armchair´s rear legs. The noose was knotted in a way it did not block Nadeshda´s breathing, unless she bent forward more than just two inches. The girl mewed and squirmed, but to no avail.
Ivan left, grinning by the thought that the helpless girl would soon find out that she still couldn´t move enough to get some fun from the rope between her legs.
***
"So, that should take hold of you! You may think about treating guests whilst we change clothes!", Tamara hissed.
"Uuhhmmph!", the adressed woman answered, because that was all the stringently tied and gagged Duchess Oksana could do.
The three agents had found her in her bedroom and overpowered her before the drowsy Duchess could even think of resisting. They had torn her nightgown from her and tied her wrists and ankles to the bedposts, using curtain cords for that purpose. They had stuffed her mouth to the bursting with scraps from her nightgown, then cleave-gagged her with a napkin.
Now, Oksana lay stark naked and obscenely spread on her bed, squirming helplessly and screaming into her gag.
The three others didn´t take notice for the moment. Whilst Cherie kept an eye on the corridor, Tamara and Giselle helped themselves by taking underwear and dresses from Oksana´s cupboards and drawers. Though the Duchess was smaller than each of the three, both managed to get decently and elegantly dressed. Then it was Cherie´s turn, whilst Giselle kept watch and Tamara put on some of Oksana´s jewelry.
"It looks more fancy on me than on a mature woman like you, wouldn´t you say?"
"Hrrrmmmmph. Nnnnnggg!", Oksana grunted, staring daggers at Tamara.
"Oh,come on, you´re still quite a sight. And what you are wearing now, is of timeless elegance." With considerable glee, she watched the naked woman´s breasts, making her shiver and blush.
"Someone´s coming", Giselle whispered.
Immediately, Tamara took the small pistol she had taken from Oksana´s desk, stepped beside her bed and held the muzzle to their captive’s temple. When they heard a knock, she shouted "Come in, please."
Dimitri, the butler, entered the room - and remained rooted to the spot. His jaw literally dropped down and his eyes widened with amazement when he saw Her Highness lying in front of him naked and spread, her face red as a beetroot from the humiliation.
Giselle closed the door behind him and Tamara spoke: "If you can take your eyes from your ladyship´s delightful forms, you may notice that I´ve got a gun pointed to her head and that I will not hesitate using it if you try to attack us or call for help. You got me?"
After what seemed ages, Dimitri nodded.
"Good. Now, let´s start by some simple facts. How many inhabitants are in the main house and how many are in the whole palace?"
Dimitri cleared his throat, unable to take his eyes away from the naked woman on the bed.
"T-there´s Her Highness-" He stopped, somehow confused about the fact that this Highness did not represent any ducal dignity in her current predicament.
"We know! And who else, except from her and you?", Tamara asked impatiently.
"It´s Dunja, Irina and Olesya, her maids. And since yesterday, there´s her Highness` grandniece Natalya, together with her maid Vera. That´s all who sleep in the main house now. Around in the adjacent buildings, there are some three dozen people, cooks, stable boys, guards, etc." Dimitri licked his lips.
"Thank you. Now, would you please be so kind and fetch this Natalya and her maid? And remember: if you talk to anyone about our being here or try to call for help, your mistress will have to pay for it."
Ivan hesitated. Being the highest ranked servant at Krasnaja Ljubila, he was used to receive orders only from the Duchess, so he looked at her questioningly. Oksana was too embarrassed and frightened to think clearly, so she just squirmed in her bonds and moaned, desperately trying to bring her legs at least a bit closer together. Dimitri obviously took this for a yes, because he went out of the door and left.
***
Natalya had nearly reached the end of her self-control. The whole situation was just becoming too much for an innocent 19 year old country-girl like her. Since Ivan had left her, she had quickly managed to get free from the manacles and her gags. She was thankful to get the vile tasting knickers from her mouth. For the next hours, she had overthought the situation again and again. What, if her grandaunt didn´t believe her and sent her to jail. Two days ago, she would not even have considered such problems, but since then she had been kidnapped twice. She had been bound, gagged, stripped - she shuddered when she remembered being in Ivan´s clutches - and humiliated. And poor Nadeshda was still in his hands - though it seemed that her maid had somehow accepted her current position.
After a while, Natalya put on a nightgown she found beside the bed. Then, she looked for clothing. Since Marion had pretended that she had been ambushed, she had had only the clothes on her that lay on the couch. She recognized the missing knickers and reluctantly put those that had gagged her before near the oven for drying. She hated putting these on, since they had been on someone else´s body and in Nadeshda´s and her mouth before, but she had to make Vera feel safe that she was Marion. Vera had helped Marion getting undressed and would be suspicious if there weren´t any panties. Natalya hoped Vera would fail to see the difference in colour. If she had her talk with Oksana, she could put this little criminal to jail, too, but till then she had to act like her evil twin.
After some hours, Vera knocked and said: "Hey, Marion, better get dressed soon, the Duchess wants to see you."
Natalya forced herself to say matter-of-factly: "Well then, please give me a hand", just like she had said to Nadeshda thousands of times.
"My, my, you´re getting into your role way too quickly. Just move your ass, it´s enough that I have to serve you when someone´s watching. Hurry, sweet cheeks, I´m waiting outside."
Natalya sighed with relief and put on the clothing quickly. She considered calling Vera in for to help her with the corset, but at least she managed to get the strings arranged more bad than good.
When she stepped on the corridor, Vera was gossiping with a man wearing a uniform, obviously a butler. The man seemed to be concerned about something and was rather uncommunicative.
"Mylady, her Highnes wishes your presence at her boudoir. Would you please follow me?", he said, looking somehow nervously at her.
Natalya had to pull herself together to stay calm: with a little bit of luck, she could clear up the whole situation within a few minutes. Slightly exhilarated, she followed the butler through the corridors, Vera following two steps behind her.
***