Freedom in Chains

by Ann Raina

  "You just form the rules the way you like them and that's not fair. Not on you and not on him." He closed the gap and touched her arm.

  She let it happen because it felt good to be touched. She felt lonely. And aimless. Her heart and her mind were miles away from each other.

  "I can read confusion all over your face. It's amazing."

  "It's clearing up," she said defensively. She moved away from Oliver, not knowing what to do or say. She did not even want to return to her kitchen. Julian would be pissed at her. A part of her asked why that should bother her, but the other squirmed that it did bother. Was he a liar and deserved that treatment or not? "I overstepped a line. And--"

  "And it won't happen again? Don't say that. Start with being honest to yourself. You liked what you did. You forced him under your control. He was handcuffed--"

  "He is still."

  Oliver's eyes were wide. "You left him like that? He can't even do it to himself? Oh." He swallowed as if the air had suddenly thickened.

  "What?"

  "Have you ever been left like that? I mean, literally, left before the orgasm? You need the release and it's denied?" He shrugged when she did not answer. "Maybe women don't need it like men do. But it's like that. You need to release that pressure, no matter how. And you left him without that possibility."

  Kyra was plainly disgusted. "You're saying he would have masturbated in my kitchen?"

  He shrugged again, implying it was the easiest solution. "You made him swallow your utter dominance over him. He couldn't do anything to avoid it. Maybe he could have, but that would have meant to resist being shackled in the first place. And now, in addition to that, you just went away, discarding him and his needs. That'll stick square in his throat."

  She hunched her shoulders and frowned. "Don't say that I must go back and do him."

  "It would be the wisest."

  "No."

  "Then let him do it." He glanced at the watch. "A slave denied deliverance that long would go mad at his master by now." He watched her lovely and oh, so confused face. "Unless the master rewards him with a very special treatment."

  Kyra frowned, backing away to the door. She was positively uncertain and angry and confused at the same time. Not a nice situation for someone, who loved to be in control.

  "It doesn't have to be intercourse, but something else exciting."

  "I've got no obligation to make him happy," she growled.

  Oliver's brows twitched. He kept her in his stare. "That does not imply that you have a right to be cruel. And you are being cruel, Kyra. You should have thought about getting that close to him before you found out about your moral standards."

  "I know you're my friend, Oliver, but at the moment I hate you."

  "Yes, let that anger roll you down the right path and I'll happily take the blame afterwards."

  Kyra fought to stay angry, but all she got was more confused. "I don't know what to do."

  "Let me help you here."

  * * * *

  Julian glared at her. His chest heaved with restraint anger, but his face could not be misread. He was angry enough to fight and lose control any second. "You're back? Got enough of the hissy fits? Then take off the fucking handcuffs, or…"

  "Or what?" Kyra asked, voice flat. She got closer to him and slowly, tentatively knelt beside him. He stank of sweat, but to her it was sweet perfume. She had to force her mind away from the imminent seduction and concentrate. She already breathed fast and shallow. "Be calm, Julian."

  "Calm? What're you talkin' about?" He lifted his head from the mattress and glared at her.

  She knelt behind his head and pulled the blindfold over his face.

  "No! Take it off!" He shook his head madly and she was glad there were no buckles to close. Oliver had an assortment of blindfolds as if dealing with them professionally and she had chosen the one easiest to handle.

  "Kyra! Stop playing with me! Damn you! Take it off! Now!"

  "Be calm," she repeated and held her breath for a moment. She did not want to agree with Oliver. She did not want to become what he already thought she was. However, seeing Julian so angry and yet so utterly helpless aroused her in a way she had never experienced before. She wanted him, but only after letting him suffer some more. It was weird, not normal, disgusting, appalling. And yet it was what she thought and wished. She fumbled with the key that opened the chain at the handcuffs. He pulled his arms up to his face in a flash and she retreated hastily. "Don't dare take it off or you'll be punished for real!"

  Her threat stopped him. He swallowed, lowered his hands down his body and sat up slowly. "What's on your mind, Kyra?" His voice was low, careful. He was not ready to play along. "Toying around with me and leaving me with nothing again?"

  "No." It was a whisper.

  Julian cocked his head and turned it, a gesture of quiet disbelief.

  "I won't play around." She wanted to add will you follow?, but thought better of it. She was in control. He had to obey. She moved around him. She could see his hands clenched to tight fists with the cuffs pressing on his bones. His lips were parted and he breathed heavily. Carefully, aware he might attack her, she opened the cuff around his ankle. "Get up." Julian stood. Kyra marveled how effortlessly he could get up without using his hands. The briefs fell to his ankles and he stepped out of them. She was aware of his nudity and at the same moment realized that he was not embarrassed at all. So he was easier with this side of the deal than she. It bugged her. She knew it should not because she was also grownup, but she felt younger and more insecure knowing that he did not care about being dressed. "Into the bathroom," she ordered and took his elbow to guide him.

  "What for?"

  "I'll whip you bloody and the place is easier to clean up. I don't like my kitchen to be messy." She got what she wanted--a small smile. "Now move."

  He walked beside her and lifted his head when they entered the main bathroom upstairs. "You ran a bath."

  The tone of surprise triggered a grin. He had not expected that and she promised she would thank Oliver for his idea. "And you're going to get in the tub." She led him to the rim so he could touch it.

  "Smells hot. You don't intend to boil me, do you?"

  "Shall I push you or will you go in now?"

  "You would push?" he replied, a touch of amusement in his voice. She gently pushed and he smiled. "You would." He stepped into the hot, but not hurting water.

  "On all fours." Kyra tried to swallow her heart down her throat again. This was exciting stuff. The telephone rang. She ignored it. Her mother probably, or her father, taking turns to be worried about their daughter's safety. Oh, she was safe at the moment. Very safe. Julian rested on hands and knees before her and she knelt at the side of the tub where she could reach his buttocks and everything else. She took a handful of soap from the dispenser and spread it with both hands from his shoulders down to his hips, avoiding the welts. He tensed, but when she did nothing else but washing him, he let out his breath. She closed her eyes and let her hands guide her along the firm line of his waist, his hipbones then down his thighs. Kyra slid one hand down his front, the other from behind between his legs and, hit by arousal, Julian gasped. Her hands, still full of soap, found his penis and scrotum. He was already half erect before she started and hardened in seconds. His breathing was so loud it echoed in the tiled room. Kyra returned her hands to his flat stomach and chest.

  Julian moaned. "No, Kyra, no, don't stop. Please. Please…" He said it over and over until her hands were back on his length, fulfilling what they had promised. "Harder," he pressed under his breath and she gripped him tight. A ripple of pleasure seized his whole body.

  Kyra thought she would burst with her own desire, but she would not cross the line. There was a growl in his throat a second before he came, bucking and rocking in her hands, spilling semen into the bathtub. Her hands trailed along the curve of his ass until she finally withdrew. "Oh, goodness…" He collapsed into the tub, splashing water over the edge. Kyr
a smiled a happy, satisfied smile. She did not mind getting wet. Now that is a pun! What would my parents say seeing me like this? Hand me a towel and dry clothes? Oh, Lord, I am giddy.

  She shoved away the thought as it only ruined her good mood. She spread two big towels on the ground and watched him relax in the hot water. He was much too tall for the tub, a funny sight. And a hot sight when she added the handcuffs, which restricted his movements. There had been some other nifty things in Oliver's playroom, and she could immediately visualize them on Julian's body. Is that weird or what? "Get out."

  "May I take off the blindfold? And maybe, just maybe, take a moment to wash my hair?"

  "Not now. Get out." She did not tell him that washing him was very close to having sex and she would not let him do anything alone. He sighed and complied, maybe reading her mind or not. She did not care while she still relished the sight of his tall and strong body. "Lie down on the floor." He could feel the soft fabric under his soles and did not hesitate. She rubbed him dry.

  He had a smut grin on his face. "Making amends?"

  "Don't push it." Kyra reached for the device Oliver had handed her with the same smut grin she saw on Julian's face. But it had been for a different reason and Julian's expression turned to confusion the moment she touched his penis again.

  "What're you doing now? What is this?"

  "A chastity device. I don't want to see you doing it to yourself."

  "Oh, my God…" He wiped both hands over his wet face, but did not take away the blindfold.

  She fastened the device with a small lock. It looked very neat and fashionable, especially on the smooth skin, undistracted by pubic hair.

  "May I guess about your provider?" he asked, reaching down to his private parts, only to find them locked away behind steel and leather. "Don't tell me you had it in your closet."

  Kyra could not truthfully say yes. She would have had it--maybe, maybe--if Chris had been open for games. But his view on sex had been so straight it had been boring. The reason for breaking up the relationship after only a year had been totally different, but she could not deny that his conservatism had unnerved her. "You can get up now."

  He let go of his breath. "Still no sight allowed?"

  Kyra was aware of how easily he could have ripped away the fabric and assailed her. He did not, which made her even more confident he would play along to the end. Besides, the bathroom had so many things in it screaming woman's room only that she did not wish to let him know. "No. I will take you back now."

  "No clothes, either?"

  "Downstairs." She guided him through her house again and, all by themselves, her thoughts cruised around living with Julian in this house, sharing what she had, talking to him every day, being lovers in the true sense of the meaning. From criminal to lover in just twenty minutes? It cannot be real. It is not real. Hormones were weird things and right now they were confusing right and wrong. Downstairs, she helped him into new briefs and locked the cuff around his ankle before she took off the handcuffs and retreated. "You can take off the blindfold."

  "Thanks."

  Kyra was gone before he could get a glimpse of her hot and red face.

  * * * *

  A week later she met with Josepha Nolan at a nice Italian restaurant just around the corner of the police station. Josepha was the fifth child of a nurse and a doctor and the only one who had opted for a job with the police instead of the hospital. Her blond hair was cut short enough to be out of the way, her face was pale and free of makeup. In fact, Kyra had never seen her use makeup. Some women are lovable all the same and Josepha, with the pale blue eyes, the small nose and kissable lips, was one of them. She was as tall as Kyra and they hugged when they met. "So good to see you," Kyra said and sat down opposite to her. "You hadn't told me you went on vacation."

  "Yeah, it was a kind of…head over heels decision."

  "The male nurse from Central Hospital?"

  "Right. Jason asked if we could take a week off, and I traded shifts so we could make it."

  "So glad it worked out for you."

  "Don't exaggerate. It's just the beginning. And you? Did Chris leave you alone?"

  "No." Kyra summed up the latest events and added, "I don't know if I can believe Julian. That's why I asked for the file on him."

  "Gee, Kyra, those folks always lie for heaven and hell and you know that. If he can make you believe him, he thinks he'll get a better treatment. That's all."

  "Maybe. And I think it's the same, but still…" She begged with her eyes. "Do you think you can let me have the file for an hour? I just want to check some data and facts he gave me."

  "I think, I can do that. But don't be disappointed, love."

  Kyra touched her girlfriend's hand on the table. "Thank you." Josepha rummaged through her big handbag. "Don't say you brought it here!"

  "Of course, I did. Can't let you into our file room, right? That would be almost illegal."

  "And stealing the file is not?"

  "Borrowing. I just borrowed it and will bring it back in two hours. No one will know, no one will ask. I'll order a bite for us and you check out what you want to know." She handed Kyra the small, flat computer, watching her reddened face. "You really applied for the program. Brave, but risky, isn't it?"

  "Not more than running the business at all." Kyra smoothed the answer with a smile. "My friends--aside you--said I couldn't do it. My father's a cop and he told me to let it be. So what should Mrs. Stubborn Daughter do? Leave it alone?"

  "No." Josepha and Kyra had a moment of perfect understanding. Of course, Josepha had had discussions with her parents for the choice of her job. That's what had bound them in the first place, the understanding of the other's interests. The friendship had lasted through Kyra's notice to quit.

  The waitress came to take their orders and Josepha did it for both of them. Kyra put on her reading glasses and was already absorbed in the statements of witnesses and personal data on the convicts. Josepha had been thorough and had not only brought the file concerning Julian's conviction, but all available statements.

  The case had been based on the statements of three officers of the DEA who, accompanied by local police forces, raided the house that night. They testified that they had gotten a hint from an anonymous informant to check it out and, bingo, they had hit and arrested three criminals and some errand runners nearby. The amount of Fidelity found in a single briefcase at the scene had been enough to accuse them of selling the drug. Twelve thousand dollars in cash had also been in the case, enough to assume the dealer had already sold some drugs to bring the other two guys the money. Julian Bithrell had resisted the arrest and had to be stopped with an electric shotgun. He had been unconscious for an hour. The personnel stated, he had been treated properly and only his interrogation had been delayed. His fingerprints had been found on the briefcase, on both sides and the handle, and he had carried a package with three thousand dollars in cash in his inner jacket pocket. Perry Wilson had been arrested as well as Giorgio Delano who had a long list of crimes connected with drugs like crack and speed. He had stated that he had been told of new customers to meet that night at that address.

  Kyra leafed through the electronic pages, searching for some enlightenment. Perry Wilson had been convicted to two years on probation and was free. Kyra was relieved. Julian had told the truth, which was refreshing. But she still pondered if she should tell Josepha about Wilson's visit at her house. She had told the two cops asking for the impostor that he might have been a new swindler in the area. If she changed that now she did not know what would happen. She had not wanted to lose Julian over the fact that he had talked with another crook. But was that right?

  Perry Wilson had been a beam on the police's radar for some time. Small stuff. A bit of drug dealing, thieving, light robbery and intrusion. While Julian had been connected to the drugs and the money because of his fingerprints, Perry had convinced the jury that he had just been there at the wrong time. He had wanted to meet with Julian,
but not for a crime. The money in Julian's pocket had spoken against him, but nothing had spoken against Perry Wilson.

  "Try the wine, Kyra, before it gets too warm."

  "Thank you." She sipped the wine and put down the glass carefully. "I would like to talk to Wilson."

  Josepha lifted her brows. "Anything else on the list of no-nos? The case's closed, Kyra, what do you expect from another interrogation? He won't be pleased to see you. You just want to know something about Bithrell."

  "But he's his friend. Or so Bithrell said."

  "He's on probation and can be everywhere in town. I mean, I'm sure he's got an address, but what will you do? Write him a letter?" Josepha tasted the bread with onions and garlic and smacked her lips. "Try this. It's delicious."

  "I can't smear the screen, can I?" Kyra took another sip of wine and continued reading.

  Julian Bithrell, born August 7th, 1994, had lived with his mother up to the age of fifteen. She had died that year and, since he had never known his father, had spent time in an orphanage, but left there early enough to earn money. He had never finished training for a profession, but it was true that he had learned carpentry among other things. He had got no employment for at least three years and his income was unclear. He had rented the present apartment eight months ago and the rent was paid on time. Neighbors said they hardly saw him and when they did he was nice and polite. Most of the inhabitants of the house knew him from sight and he had never caused any trouble. An officer had noted that the people around only recognized him by description of his height, but not by name. Trying to blend in, hmm? Kyra turned the page.

  She wondered how a man like him had managed to stay out of trouble for such a long time. Either he was a clever criminal or he told the truth that he had earned his life with small jobs. Maybe not honorable work, but at least nothing worth going to jail for it.

  Dinner was served and Kyra shut off the computer. "Thank you for doing this, Josepha. Could you do me one more favor?" Josepha nodded with her mouth full of pizza. "Can you give me Wilson's address?"