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DRAMATIS PERSONÆ

The Western horizon was a magnificent panoply of gray-green clouds tinged with gold above a glittering blue and silver sea.  Katherine stifled a yawn, and stretched, being careful to make as little noise as possible.   Sunset in less than an hour, she decided.  Her legs were tired from crouching beside the doorway, and she really could have used the nap Thomasina believed she was taking, but rest was out of the question.  She had to be ready; ready to spring her trap.

Thomasina had said she would return at sunset, and that they'd not be disturbed for the rest of the evening.  Katherine completed her stretch and settled back in to wait.  She was clad in a black neoprene one-piece swimsuit and a body-hugging equipment harness concealing cord, flexi-cuffs, and tape.  Rubber dive tabbies were on her feet, and a dive knife was sheathed and strapped to the outside of her right calf.  All had been "borrowed" from Thomasina's walk-in closet.  Katherine had chosen the ensemble for freedom of movement, comfort in the Mediterranean climate, and possible action in the water.

Although substantially ignorant of the island's layout, the number of Thomasina's servants or guards who might be present, or even exactly where the island was located... Katherine was formulating a plan:

1. Capture and secure Thomasina Crown (to buy time... and enjoy a little revenge).
2. Wait until things settled down (midnight?), then find Sally.  (That part was iffy... but she had to try.)
3. Commandeer a fast boat and make for the nearest mainland.
4. Contact the authorities and report a "boating accident" (which would account for their lack of passports, money, etc.).

Thomasina wouldn't be able to touch them, no matter how much bribe money she threw around (or so Katherine hoped).  They wouldn't even have to deny having been Thomasina's "guests."   All we have to do is thank her for the flight over in her private jet, Katherine mused, express our regret about the 'accident', arrange for new passports and a money transfer, and fly home.

Katherine gazed down at the tiny canister of "Soma" in her right hand.  Absorbed through the skin, the mixture of drugs would render Thomasina as helpless as a sleeping baby.   All I need is a little luck... okay, a lot of luck, to make it all the way back to New York.  She glanced up at the statue of Artemis across the room.   Hail huntress!  I'm as prepared as I can get, at this point.  Any additional help you can send my way...

Just then a soft, melodic chime sounded from the apartment's foyer.   The elevator!  Katherine's heart began hammering, and a very feral smile curled her lips.

Thomasina Crown wheeled a small cart into the bedroom.  Her hair was hanging down her back in a loose ponytail, she was wearing a lightweight, silk, pearl white robe, and her feet were bare.  Her back was to Katherine, and her full attention focused on the carefully crafted, Katherine-shaped pile of clothing "sleeping" under the covers of the large circular bed.  "Wakie, wakie, Sleepy-head," Thomasina cooed.  She glanced at the chain linking "the slumbering Katherine's" collar to the far ceiling.  "How ever did you manage to crawl under the sheets?" she asked.  "You're a regular wiggle worm, aren't you?"

Katherine crept behind her "hostess," silently matching her pace for pace as they approached the bed.  The cart was laden with covered plates and wine bottles chilling in ice.  The wheels made a little noise, just enough to cover any mismatch in the patter of Katherine and her prey's feet.  The cart stopped and Thomasina continued to the edge of the bed platform.

"C'mon, Sleeping Beauty," Thomasina said, hands on hips.  "You can't have been that tired."

Katherine reached from behind and spritzed a cloud of Soma vapor directly into Thomasina's face.   Instantly the raven-haired beauty spun on her heel and struck a defensive pose.  Simultaneously, Katherine danced back and assumed a complementary stance.  Thomasina coughed and blinked... then she focused on Katherine... and smiled.  "Very good, Ms. Banning," Thomasina purred—then her eyes rolled up in her head and she collapsed back onto the bed.

Katherine acted quickly, pattering out to the foyer.  The elevator had remained on this floor (the top) and the stairs were empty and silent.  She returned to the bedroom and approached the bed.  Thomasina Crown was out like the proverbial light, eyes closed, a half smile curling her lips, her right hand half raised and the fingers of her hand curled gracefully, her left limp at her side, her left leg mostly off the bed, and her right slightly bent at the knee, her foot dangling in mid air.  Her robe was still tightly bound with its sash around her narrow waist, but the lower portion was tangled and parted, revealing legs and thighs all the way to her silk-clad crotch.

Satisfied that they were alone, Katherine climbed onto the bed, grabbed Thomasina's wrists, and dragged her limp body completely onto the mattress.  She released Thomasina's arms and they fell limply at her sides.  The expression on the unconscious Thomasina's face remained calm and serene; the expression on Katherine's... decidedly feral.   She reversed position, straddled Thomasina's body, and knelt, settling her weight atop her former captor's hips, then pulled the robe off Thomasina's left shoulder.  Underneath she was wearing a shimmering, white, one-piece swimsuit.  The silky fabric was thin and semi-opaque, and hugged Thomasina's voluptuous form like a layer of pearlescent paint.

Before she went any further, Katherine slapped a single strip of medical tape over Thomasina's lips, smoothing the milky rectangle with her fingers.  Pretty!  The unconscious beauty's lips were visible through the translucent tape, slightly squashed by the pressure of the tape, but otherwise quite natural, and attractive... and all mine!  The robe was pulled off Thomasina's arms and from around her body.  The sash was long and wide, perhaps four feet by four inches.  Katherine pulled it free and tossed the robe to the floor beside the bed.

The bathing suit was next.  It was unlined over Thomasina's breasts, had almost no back, spaghetti thin straps that tied at the nape of her neck, and was very French cut.  Its only concession to modesty was a small triangular panel of doubled fabric that almost succeeded in concealing the dark patch of her pubic bush.  The effort was spoiled, however, by the tightness and stretch of the fabric.  Thomasina had a "camel toe" which left very little to the imagination.  Katherine untied the bow behind Thomasina's neck and peeled the suit down her torso and off her legs.  The suit was tossed beside the robe, and Thomasina was naked, lying on her back under her captor's kneeling form, tape-gagged but otherwise unrestrained.

Katherine smiled down at Thomasina's pale, toned, perfect body.  Escape options hadn't been the only thing on her mind while she waited for Thomasina to return.  She knew exactly what she wanted to do to the unconscious billionaire, and set to work.  She flipped Thomasina onto her stomach, gathered her hands behind her back and joined her wrists together with a pair of flexi-cuffs.  The joined cable-ties were padded with vinyl tubing, just like the ones Katherine had endured in New York.  A second pair was used to bind Thomasina's ankles.  As an afterthought, Katherine embellished her plan by using the sash of Thomasina's robe to blindfold her captive.  Working quickly, Katherine removed all of the designer clothing she had heaped under the covers to simulate her own bound body, transferring the mass to the floor of the walk-in closet.  As she added Thomasina's robe to the pile, something fell out of the pocket.  It was a signet ring, identical in appearance to the ring she had stolen from Kimber, and it was clipped to a small medallion control, similar to a car door remote.  The remote had a single button, printed with a symbol like a small TV screen.  Katherine patted the robe down and discovered a small inner pocket and a tiny, folded, cellular phone.

She hit the button on the remote and a huge flat screen lowered from the ceiling near the apartment's main door.  Simultaneously, a pedestal rose from the floor near the bed.  Katherine walked over to the pedestal and discovered a second, much smaller screen.  Both came to life, and Katherine beheld a stylized map of the islands around her.  There was a set of icons beside the map on the pedestal and Katherine realized it was a touch screen.  Everything was in Greek, but she touched a small Union Jack among a stack of other flags off to the side and the words rippled into English.  The interface was easy to decipher.  She zoomed the map to a larger scale and learned that Thomasina's private archipelago was part of the Cyclades.  Katherine made a mental note of the magnetic bearing of Athens, then zoomed back down to the island.  She tapped an icon and a set of thumbnail images filled the screen.  There were graphic links between individual thumbnails and locations on the island map.   Security camera feeds!  Katherine tapped a thumbnail, it enlarged to fill the screen, and Katherine recognized the stairwell leading to her current location.  All was quiet.

Katherine left the stair image on the main screen, then folded the pedestal's screen flat and faced the bed.  Thomasina was still out cold.  Katherine set the ring, remote, and phone on the serving cart, dragged a comfortable chair beside the cart, sat down and put her feet up on the bed, then began removing covers from the cart's serving dishes.  Seafood!  She loaded a plate, opened a bottle of white wine, and settled in to wait.

Katherine was halfway through her second plate of marine delicacies when Thomasina began showing signs of life.  Silently chewing a mouthful of lobster meat, she watched as the prisoner tossed her head and squirmed in her bonds.  Thomasina twisted her flexi-cuffed ankles, pointing her toes, then half-rolled onto her side.  She lifted her blindfolded and tape-gagged head and turned to "look" over one smooth, white shoulder at her flexi-cuffed wrists.  She was twisting her arms to the side and Katherine could see the captive's fluttering, groping fingers.

Satisfied that she was helpless (for the moment), Thomasina set about exploring her bonds in detail.  She tucked her legs, leaned back, and her fingers passed over the plastic bands encircling her ankles.  Confirming that there were no knots to be untied, she sighed through her gag, and relaxed.

Katherine took a silent sip of wine, enjoying the show.  Thomasina's breasts were firm and perfect, her well-toned muscles flexing and gliding under her pale, flawless skin as she resumed her efforts to escape.  Katherine frowned.  Thomasina was bending forward and attempting to slide her bound wrists forward and past her buttocks and hips.  Cuffed tightly together as they were, Katherine knew this was difficult, but not impossible, especially for a flexible captive in excellent condition, and Thomasina definitely fit that bill.  If she succeeded, Thomasina would pull her legs through her arms and her wrists would be in front.  She'd make short work of her tape-gag and blindfold, and then either scream her aristocratically beautiful throat hoarse until help arrived, or hop off in search of a means of cutting her bonds.  That wouldn't do.  It wouldn't do at all!

"That will be quite enough of that, Ms. Crown," Katherine announced.  Thomasina started at the sound of Katherine's voice, then went still.  "I want your hands to remain behind your back.  If you try that trick again, I have several coils of cord and rope handy... and you'll regret it.  Understand?"  Thomasina nodded, then snuggled her bound body against the bed's rumpled sheets.  "If I remove your gag," Katherine inquired, "I assume you won't scream?  That would force me to re-gag you in a much more effective and decidedly less comfortable manner."  Thomasina nodded again.  Katherine set her plate on the tray, leaned close, and ripped the tape from Thomasina's lips in one callous tear.

The still blindfolded captive winced, then licked her full lips.  "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Katherine purred, retrieving her plate and settling back into her chair.  "Are you hungry?"

Thomasina snuggled in her bonds and smiled.  "Yes.  I swam to the opposite island and back, which is twice my normal workout.  Some lobster salad and scampi would be most welcome, thank you."

Katherine continued eating.  "Well... I don't particularly feel like feeding you at the moment.  Maybe later I'll put a plate on the floor and you can fight the flies for whatever's left when I'm full... which won't be much... at the rate I'm going.  The scampi are delicious.  Just the right amount of garlic.  Simply delicious."  Katherine reloaded her plate and continued eating.  "I usually don't make a glutton of myself," she explained.  "I guess being kidnapped to a foreign country brings out the appetite."

"It's the aftereffect of the drugs," Thomasina said.  "I suggest you go easy on the wine, and avoid the ouzo all together."

Katherine smiled and and took a sip of wine.  "Excellent advice, I'm sure."   She was taken aback by Thomasina's attitude.  She'd been expecting anger and threats (and maybe a little fear), followed by reluctant bargaining, but the helpless billionaire was totally nonplussed by her unexpected captivity.  It was unexpected, mildly infuriating, and (for some reason) more than a little exciting.   Duty before pleasure.   "Now... answer me a question:  Where's Sally?"

"Oh... I'm afraid I haven't seen Ms. Krippendorf since lunch... when we watched her, uh, 'sunbathing' with Little Red?"

"I remember," Katherine mumbled.

"If you release my wrists and hand me my phone... I'll summon her forthwith."

Katherine smiled.  "And being a trusting soul, I'm to believe she won't appear behind a phalanx of your heavily armed security staff?"

Thomasina smiled, "gazing" at her captor with her beautiful, blindfolded visage.  "There are only a very few servants on Theraxos," she said, "but the archipelago is well defended.  I have air and surface search radars on the highest peaks of two of the islands, and a sufficient quick reaction force to ward off would-be kidnappers... or so I thought."

Katherine set her plate on the cart and stood, smiling down at her prisoner.  Maybe she had drunk too much of the excellent wine and it was interacting with the remnants of the drugs still in her system, but Katherine found another appetite was asserting itself.  Thomasina's body was... perfection.  The captive writhed slightly in her bonds, and a thrill of pleasure coursed through Katherine's sex and up her spine.  Her body shuddered, and her cheeks burned with a slight blush.  Thomasina's complexion was decidedly fair, but Katherine noted that it had begun responding to the Mediterranean sun.  Her shoulders had just the slightest hint of color, a ghost of a sunburn, and a light sprinkling of pale freckles had appeared on her chest, above her full, firm, perfect breasts.

Katherine climbed on the bed and straddled Thomasina's naked body.  The captive was lying on her back and bound wrists.  Katherine settled her weight on Thomasina's abdomen, leaned forward, filled her hands with Thomasina's breasts, and gave them a gentle squeeze.

A coy smile curling her full lips, Thomasina shuddered in her bonds.  "Why Ms. Banning, whatever are you doing?"

Katherine smiled, leaned lower still, and kissed her bound, blindfolded captive, continuing her massage of Thomasina's breasts.  "Well... you've taken intimate liberties with my person for several days now... across two continents..."  Her right hand wandered down Thomasina's flank, through her abundant pubic bush, and cupped the shivering prisoner's sex.  "I just thought I'd return the favor... before Sally and I leave."

"Leave?" Thomasina demanded, continuing to writhe and shudder under Katherine's exploration of her helpless body.  "Say it isn't so!  Have I been that poor a hostess?"

Katherine laughed and kissed Thomasina again.  "As hedonistic kidnappers go, I'd say you've been the very soul of hospitality."  She nibbled the lobe of Thomasina's left ear, then nuzzled her neck, savoring the scent of clean skin and hair.  "But we don't wish to overstay our welcome."

"I insist you stay long enough to hear what I know you'll find to be a most interesting proposition."

"You're not in a position to insist on anything," Katherine observed, kissing Thomasina's lips.  "I'm setting the agenda for the evening."

"Well," Thomasina purred, "by remarkable coincidence, our agendas would seem to be the same... only the roles are reversed."

"Be quiet," Katherine ordered, "or I'll gag you... and then you'll find it much more difficult to earn that doggie dish dinner I promised you."

Thomasina thrust her hips against Katherine's hand and kissed her captor's face.  "Yes, mistress," she whispered.

'Mistress...'  Katherine slid her fingers between Thomasina's labia.  "You're absolutely dripping, slave."  The prisoner shuddered and bit her lower lip, purring softly in the back of her throat.  Katherine slid her tongue along the side of Thomasina's neck and thrust it into her right ear.  Thomasina's purr became a growl, then a muffled scream as Katherine slid her tongue into the captive's mouth and simultaneously fingered her swolen clitoris; but the scream became a frustrated moan when Katherine withdrew both hand and tongue.  "Oh—poor baby," Katherine cooed.  "Are you all hot and bothered?  Well, if you expect me to do anything about it... slither down and do me first."

Thomasina sighed.  "Mistress is cruel," she muttered, a coy smile curling her full, flushed lips.

"Do as you're told, slave," Katherine muttered, sat up, and began peeling off her harness and swimsuit.

The sun had been down for perhaps two hours.  Katherine was back in her borrowed costume, seated in the chair with her feet up on the bed, and watching her prisoner eat.  Still naked, blindfolded, and her wrists and ankles flexi-cuffed; Thomasina's bondage had been enhanced by the addition of the collar and chain that had formerly restrained Katherine.  Further, bands of black cord linked her thumbs to the back of her collar, pinned her arms to her sides, yoked her shoulders, and framed her breasts.  She was kneeling on the marble floor, and as delicately and neatly as possible, dining from a plate of seafood delicacies.  Despite her best efforts, her nose, mouth, and chin glistened with garlic laced olive oil, various sauces, and flecks of food.

"Such a grubby little pet," Katherine observed as Thomasina finished the last of her meal.  She rose from her chair, carried the bound, blindfolded, and chained prisoner back to the bed, and sat down with her, cradling the captive's head and shoulders on her bare thighs and neoprene-clad lap.  "What a mess," she purred, leaned close, and began licking her prisoner's food soiled face.

Katherine had found the means to light the several candles scattered tastefully around the apartment and she smiled, savoring the golden glow the flickering flames gave Thomasina's fair skin, still shining with the perspiration they had both worked up making love on the rumpled bed.  Katherine wet a napkin and gave her prisoner's lower face a gentle scrubbing.

"I presume you're waiting until things settle down before making your escape," Thomasina said quietly.

Katherine laughed, tossing the napkin back on the cart.  "Now why should I tell you what my plans are?"

"Ms. Banning," Thomasina said, squirming in her captor's lap, "I really do have something I'd like to discuss with you before you make your attempt."

"I'm not going anywhere, for the moment," Katherine responded, "and neither are you; that's for certain."

Thomasina smiled.  "Your kidnapping is actually a recruitment, Ms. Banning."

"A recruitment?"

"I can use the services of a talented and professional investigator such as yourself."

Katherine laughed.  "Flattery will get you nowhere, Ms. Crown... except perhaps gagged and hog-tied on your bed."

"I'm serious," Thomasina objected.  "After I became aware of your interest in my affairs, my staff began compiling a dossier.  Your résumé is most impressive, and since becoming my guest, your behavior, attitude, and conduct have made a favorable impression."

"A favorable impression," Katherine snorted.  "I make an impressive kidnap victim, do I?"  

"Character is not easily disguised, Ms. Banning," Thomasina said.  "Not for very long, anyway.  With additional training you'll make a most valuable member of my team."

Katherine smiled down at her blindfolded captive.  "Your team?" she asked, running her hand through Thomasina's raven locks.  "So... you admit to being the leader of a gang of cat burglars?"

Thomasina smiled.  "I admit no such thing... and will discuss none of my activities until you agree to enter my employ."

"Let me guess," Katherine purred, "lucrative salary, stock options, full medical plan, and my very own inescapable cell in Helena's dungeons."

Thomasina laughed.  "I admit that the Human Resources arrangements for this branch of the Crown organization are... unorthodox, but accept my offer and you'll not only be financially secure for life, but you'll have near free reign to pursue your true passion."

"I'm already financially secure," Katherine responded, "but tell me... what is my 'true passion?'"

"Why... the hunt, of course."

Katherine's eyes darted to the statue of Artemis, then back to her prisoner.  "Yes... 'the hunt.'  I tell you what, Ms. Crown.  When Sally and I get back to New York, we can start this game over.  Your wealth and power will always give you the advantage, but that makes you all the more challenging... as prey... doesn't it?"  She reached down and began massaging Thomasina's nipples (which grew hard under her lambent touch).

Thomasina shuddered, squirming in her bonds and causing her chain to clink and clatter.  "As prey..." she whispered.

Katherine's smile turned decidedly feral.  "As my prey."  Thomasina snuggled her head against her captor's body and bit her lower lip.   Would it be so bad, Katherine mused.   Would it be so bad playing out this game to the end... to be her prisoner again?  She shuddered and gave both of Thomasina's nipples a gentle pinch.   I hate being tied up! she remembered.  "What have you done to me, you witch?" she whispered.

Thomasina frowned behind her blindfold.  "What, darling?"

Katherine shook her head.  "Never mind.  I have more than myself to think about.  Are you going to help me find Sally?"  She slid her hands down Thomasina's wriggling body to rub her stomach and thighs, then gently caressed the shuddering captive's glistening sex.  "Or do I have to torture her whereabouts out of you?"

"I really don't know where she is," Thomasina said, not in the least bit intimidated by her captor's playful threat.

Suddenly, Katherine noticed a flicker of motion out of the corner of her eye.  The security camera feed was still filling the large TV screen near the door, and on it, Katherine could see two figures creeping up the stairs towards the apartment—Andrea and Sally!  "Well," Katherine whispered, "the mountain comes to Mohammed."

Thomasina squirmed in her bonds.  "Wha—M'mmpfh!"  Katherine had her in a tight hand-gag.

"Hush!" Katherine whispered, and reached for a roll of tape.

Sally's wrists were still bound behind her back to their opposite upper arms and her forearms lashed together.  Naked, except for her choker collar with its "pet tag" and dangling steel ring, she pattered behind Andrea as they mounted the final steps to Thomasina's summit apartment.  "Anyone ever tell ya you're a nosey little thing?" she whispered at her lover's back.

Andrea glared back over her shoulder and gave her captive playmate a disgusted look, then leaned close and whispered in Sally's right ear.  "Remember all the times I've told you to shut up or you'll get us in trouble?"  Sally nodded.  "Well... what part of 'shut up or you'll get us in trouble' has you confused?"

Sally smiled.  Andrea was all attitude, hands on her hips, stamping one bare foot and causing her breasts to bob under the slight constriction of the sheer, tunic-length chiton hugging her body.   Never cuter, the captive thought.   Sorry! she mouthed silently

A flicker of a smile passed over Andrea's freckled face, then her scowl returned.  "Thomasina won't punish us if we're caught snooping on her," she explained in a whisper.  "She'll turn us over to Helena... probably for a week."

Sally swallowed, then slowly nodded.

With a final warning glare Andrea turned, and the petite pair continued up the dark steps.  They eased into the foyer, silent as mice, and peeked around the door.  The bed was empty; however, draped from the far ceiling towards the bed, a steel chain was clinking and shaking in the soft candlelight.  Apparently the action was on the floor, on the far side of the bed platform.

Andrea motioned for Sally to remain where she was, and crept forward.  She eased to the side... and to her complete and utter surprise she beheld Thomasina, naked, hog-tied, chained by the neck, gagged, and blindfolded!  Andrea's eyes popped wide and she began to back up—but suddenly the short redhead was grabbed from behind!  She opened her mouth to scream and something was spritzed in her face.  She gasped and coughed, then a hand clamped her mouth and pinched her nostrils closed!  The short redhead struggled and writhed, but her attacker had her elbows locked firmly behind her back.  She tried to kick... then went limp.

Sally straightened up and pattered forward.  Katherine was the attacker, of course; resplendent in her borrowed neoprene suit, harness, tabbies, and sheathed dive knife.  Andrea was in her arms, and a gloating smile on her face.  "So, Krippendorf," she purred, "you here to rescue me again?"