I want to tell you a very special story, about what happened when Janna and I decided to combine a long weekend away with a visit – a working holiday, if you want, but it turned into something very different…
The person I wanted to suggest to Janna was an authoress called Delia Davies. She was a serious writer – historical romances, that sort of thing – and lived in the Yorkshire Dales on the outskirts of Catterick. Those who have read these stories know that both Janna and I love the Dales, and we had talked for a while of just driving up for the weekend, stopping wherever we wanted. The more we talked about it, however, the more we realised that we could start the weekend in an – interesting way.
So for the week before we drove north, we studied what we knew. Delia was in her early forties, a widower, and lived with her two daughters – twelve year old Bobbi and eleven year old Becca. They kept themselves very much to themselves, only really seen in the town for the Saturday morning shop, and otherwise not at all. So we already knew, if we were going to visit them, we’d have to let the police know. It wasn’t the first time I had done that, which was fair enough…
So we packed our bags, loaded up the car on the Friday morning, made sure we also had our rucksacks fully stocked, and then drove off, heading north on the A1 – and into that very different weekend…
It would have been about five o’clock when we drove through Catterick, and then to the house where Delia and her family lived. I was wearing my brown jumper, leggings and knee length leather boots, with a brown leather bomber jacket, while Steve was in a black jumper and jeans, trainers and a black leather biker jacket.
It was a mile or two outside the town, set back from the main road with a driveway that went up a small hill, and a stone wall around the outside. There was a garage, but their car was parked outside, so Steve parked just outside the main gate and looked at me, while I looked at him. It was starting to get dark, as we pulled the stockings down over our heads, and then put on the leather gloves.
“Ready?”
“Ready,” I said as we got out of the car, and made our way quickly up the driveway and to the front door of the house. From my jacket pocket, I drew out the starting pistol we used to – persuade the elders to play the game, and nodded as Steve knocked on the front door.
We waited, breathing deeply as we heard footsteps on the other side, and then the door opened, Delia Davies looking at us and saying “yes, how can I…”
“Good evening,” Steve said as he made her walk back in, my following and closing the door. “Please, stay calm and quiet. We have no desire to hurt you or your daughters, but we do need your complete cooperation.”
“I would do as he says,” I continued, “in fact, we want you to help us in keeping your daughters calm.”
Delia looked at both of us, and for a moment I thought she was going to smile. The older woman was wearing a white blouse, the sleeves rolled up, black culottes and taupe coloured leather boots with a three inch square heel. She took a moment to calm herself, and then said “how?”
“We need you to tell your daughters this is a game you organized,” Steve said, “and that you’re all going to play along. The game is robbers, and my friend and I are going to make sure none of you can stop us. Will you do that?”
“I think I can manage that,” Delia said, “so what do you want me to do?”
“First, turn round and face the wall, and put your hands behind your back,” I said quietly, and as she turned round I took from my pocket a length of white cord. She put her hands together, and a few minutes later I had her wrists tied tightly together, the rope going around and between her arms.
“Now then,” Steve said quietly, “where are the girls?”
“Bobbi and Becca? In the front room,” Delia said, “I’ll show you.”
We looked at each other – she was been very cooperative. Too cooperative, so I watched carefully as we walked to the door, Steve opened it, we walked in – and the first thing I heard was “hhrrtheeemmm?”
It took me a moment to take in what was going on as well… Bobbi and Becca were lying on the floor – Bobbi was wearing a long sleeved black top with a pattern on the front, blue jeans, and knee length wide black boots. Becca was next to her, in her case wearing a white jumper, grey leggings and black knee length leather boots. She had dark hair like Delia, while Bobbi had long blonde hair, but it was the fact they were both trussed like members of the TTTT club that caught our attention.
Their arms were folded behind their backs, their wrists secured to their elbows, and rope around their forearms which was also holding their bound ankles in place. Their upper arms were held tightly to their sides with two bands of rope, and their legs secured below their knees. Large silk squares had been rolled into bands, knotted and used as combination stuff and cleave gags.
“Bobbi, Becca,” Delia said quietly, “these fine people are here to play a game of Robbers with us – and yes, they are the real Games Players.”
The two girls looked at us, and said “hmmgddsrelllyu?”
“Perhaps you can explain,” I said as Janna looked at the girls.
“Well, they read about you,” Delia said as she sat down, “and they asked me if I would tie them up for an hour or two. I guess it’s just grown from there… So now, every weekend one of us holds the other two hostage.”
“I see,” I said as I knelt down, and secured her ankles together, before tying her legs together below her knees, “for how long?”
“Lllweknddd.”
“All weekend?” Janna looked at Bobbi, who nodded as she and Becca wriggled round. I took a longer length of rope, and secured Delia’s arms to her sides, taking the rope above and below her chest and pulling tighter with each pass, as Janna knelt down and eased the gag out of Bobbi’s mouth.
“So your mother did this to you,” she said.
“Yeah – but if you’re the real Games Players, we’re going to be robbed, aren’t we?”
“Well, I’m afraid so.”
“Snnttffrrr!”
“Becca, please,” Delia said as I tied the chest ropes off.
“No, she doesn’t mean it’s not fair you’re going to rob us,” Bobbi said, “she means it’s not fair that we won’t be able to play the game all weekend, because the police will come and free us.”
“Well, I’m afraid that would be the case,” Delia said, “so we need to make the best of it, girls.”
“Unless…”
Bobbi looked at both of us, and said “if you really want to play the game with us, then keep us hostage all weekend. Nobody’s coming to visit, apart from our grocery delivery tomorrow – and we have nothing to do apart from our homework.”
I looked at Steve, and then at Delia and the girls. “Are you seriously saying you want us to hold you hostage all weekend?”
“Yeah,” Bobbi said, “keep all three of is tightly tied up and gagged, except for toilet breaks and food – until Monday morning. What do you say Mum?”
We both looked at Delia, who smiled and said “I’m up for it if you girls are – and I know you’re going to rob us, so make sure we really can’t stop you.”
Steve said nothing, except to go into the hallway, and return with a large cream coloured headscarf. “You three need to stay here while we have a look round,” he said as he rolled it into a band and tied a knot in the middle, “so remember – no screaming for help, all right?”
“Open your mouth,” I said as I re-gagged Bobbi, and Steve made sure Delia was kept reasonably quiet, the three of them nodding as I turned the television on, and went out with Steve.
“Are they serious,” I said quietly.
“I think they are – and we have no other plans. What do you say – want to have a weekend with a difference?”
“We can’t eat at the same time as them, you know.”
“I know – but if we keep them trussed and gagged in different ways, we have time to eat, and other things. What do you say – want to do a Jay Edwards and Mrs McPhee, without the accents and the forced bank robbery?”
I smiled, and said “I must be out of my head – do we have spare stockings?”
“I’ll do a supply run later – in the meantime, let’s look round the house and lay some plans.”
An hour later, we came back into the room, as Steve said “Well, we have a slight problem, ladies – it appears we are snowed in, and cannot leave for a few days.”
“So,” I said as I looked at them, “we’re going to have to stay until we can get out – and make sure you three stay where we can keep an eye on all of you. Sorry – but we’ll make it as fun as possible. Are you expecting visitors?”
“Grssrtmrrr,” Delia mumbled over the darkening cream silk knot.
“Grocer? Well, we’ll make sure the girls are kept quiet, and you will do whatever we say, or else…”
All three of them nodded as I said “good – now, we’re going to untie your mother, and she can prepare some supper for all of us. I’ll go with her while my friend stays here, all right?”
The two girls nodded as Steve released Delia’s legs, and then I escorted her to the kitchen. Once there, I untied and removed the scarf, before untying her arms.
“Thanks – you guys know what you are doing,” she said as she rubbed her wrists.
“Okay – the deal is we will, as suggested, keep all three of you bound and gagged as much as possible this weekend. Obviously, you will have to cook – but you will be gagged and your legs hobbled for that. We’ll tie you to the chairs before we ungag you and you can eat, and you get toilet breaks – but otherwise, you are our captives. In return, we will make sure you are secured on Monday as if we had called before the girls went to school. Acceptable?”
“Will you start now?”
I nodded as I re-gagged her, and then tied her legs together and her ankles with a short length of rope between them, so that she could walk/shuffle around the room. I then helped her to prepare some snacks in the oven, and some glasses of milk, before helping her to carry them to the front room.
As she sat down, Steve and I released the girls from their hogties and sat them on the couch, before untying their arms and then removing the gags of all three of them.
“Wow,” Becca said as she took a drink, “the real Game Players! This is going to be so exciting!”
“I know,” Bobbi said as she took a piece of Garlic bread, “what are you going to do to us?”
“All in good time – when are you expecting the grocery delivery tomorrow Delia?”
“At ten,” their mother said as she sipped some milk.
“Right – well, when you have finished, you two girls and your mother will come upstairs with us. We’ll let you go to the toilet and change, and then we’re going to tie you to the beds and tape gag you for the night.”
The cheer from the three girls was – well, muted, but they and Delia all seemed pleased at the idea. Steve nodded as I took my rucksack, and went up the stairs to make the preparations…
As I came out of what I figured was Becca’s bedroom, I watched as the three of them were walked up the stairs, their hands on their heads as Steve said “All right – you two can go to the bathroom and do what you need to do. Delia, you go with my friend here, and bring back what all three of you will wear tonight?”
She nodded as we went into the first bedroom, with pictures of pop stars on the wall, and I said “Bobbi’s room?”
“Yes – we’re all going to wear the same sort of thing to bed,” she said as she opened a drawer, and took out a pair of light pink pyjamas with a pattern of an old air balloon on them. As we went to Becca’s room, with the cuddly toys and books, she took a matching pair out, and then went to her own bedroom to get a third pair.
“You will want to sleep – there’s a guest bedroom in there,” she said as she nodded to a fourth door, and then we walked back to the bathroom. Steve took the two pairs of pyjamas for the girls, and passed them in, the three of us waiting until they came out.
“Your turn,” he said to Delia as I looked at the girls, and said “can you cross your wrists in front of your tummies?”
“We’re going to be tied to the bed?”
“That’s right,” I said as I took a length of cord, and secured Bobbi’s wrists together in front of her, leaving the two ends as they fell to the floor after I had cinched the binding. I then did the same to Becca, as Delia came out. The only difference was while the pyjama topes of the two girls had a round neck, and darker pink elasticated cuffs, hers had a button or two at the neck and no cuffs.
“Oh no – they’ve started to tie you up again,” she said in mock terror, as Steve tied her wrists together in the same way as the girls. “What are you going to do to us?”
“In here first,” Steve said as we went into Bobbi’s bedroom, and she lay down on the bed, her head on the pillows as I took her wrists up and tied them to the headboard. Steve then tied her ankles tightly together, as well as her legs below her knees, while I picked up a roll of white microrpore tape and tore a length off.
“Sleep well,” Delia said as I pressed the tape over her mouth, and then she leaned over to kiss her daughter’s forehead before we went out of the room – once Steve had secured her ankles to the foot of the bed. We did the same to Becca, leaving her humming to herself as we went to their mother’s bedroom, and tied her to the bed as well.
“You’ll make sure they are safe,” she said as Steve tore the tape from the roll.
“They’ll be fine,” he said before he pressed the tape firmly over her lips, and then we left the room, turning the lights off.
“We’ll check them later,” I said as Janna looked at me. “Do they have something we can eat?”
As she nodded, I said “right – you go and start cooking, I’ll see if we can get the car into the garage.” We walked down the stairs and into the kitchen, and as Janna went to the stove I went into the garage, and saw there was enough room next to their car for ours.
Ten minutes later, I got out of our car, and closed the garage door, before I came back in ad took the stocking mask off. Janna had already done so, and was putting some pizzas into the oven.
“Steve – are we going to be able to do this?”
“I think so – she said they had a guest bedroom?” As Janna nodded, I said “I’ll take our bags up after we eat and check them – and then we can work out the timetable for everything…”
To Be Continued...