Part 30 (2/2)

I gently moved her away from me. Tears still falling silently down her cheeks. Her hands moving ineffectually behind her, wanting to brush the tears away, but unable. Amy and Jane were standing by the door, looking frightened and helpless.

I let them wait there for a few moments and then released the auto doors from the time block. The heat sensor sprang to life, sensing the warm girls standing in front of it. The doors slid open.

Relief flashed across the women's faces as they realized that punishment, whatever I was planning for them, had been staved off for little while at least.

Chapter 90.

The store was nearly deserted. I left the girls huddled by the door and walked along the front of the store. Pop cases were piled up against the front windows. The cas.h.i.+ers and tills a step or two back.

There were a few customers lined up at the registers. Four cas.h.i.+ers were ringing up the sales. A more senior woman was taking care of the express line. Another middle aged woman was ringing up a elderly woman's purchases in lane four. Down at the other end two younger women had their lanes lighted. Lanes ten and eleven. Both brunette. The shorter of the two looked like she was helping bag for the one in charge of lane ten.

I walked over to them. They were both mid twenties. Perhaps late twenties. Kathleen and Nicole their name tags read. They almost could have been sisters. Similar builds. Similar upturned noses. Kathleen was ringing up the groceries of an older gentleman. His young grandson, seated in the cart. Kathleen was smiling, talking to the older man as her hand swiped a bag of milk across the laser reader. All frozen in time.

I wandered back to my nude girls. They were still frightened and huddling near the door. Whispering.

”Christi?”

”Sir?” She stepped forward hesitantly.

”Turn around.” She did and I unlocked her hands. I released the equipment pack from her fingers. She turned back around to face me, her hands limply at her sides.

She looked at me. Apprehension still evident on her face. ”You are going to take them. Aren't you?”

I pursed my lips. ”Probably.”

”Why are you angry with us?” she whispered.

”I'm not angry with you.”

”You sound angry. Please. We haven't done anything.”

I touched her shoulder. ”Christi. I really am not angry with you. I'm just in a strange mood.”

”It's not about what Jane and I did? Is it? Amy doesn't deserve to be punished for that.”

I shook my head. ”I'm not punis.h.i.+ng anyone, unless there is a reason to. We might play a bit, though.”

She wore one of those, I'm-not-very-surprised-about-that looks. ”You are going to hurt us. Aren't you?” Her voice was flat. And almost unemotional. Though tears had begun to well in her eyes.

”Maybe. We'll see. For now, we need to do some shopping. Come here.”

The frightened girl followed me meekly to where the shopping carts were stored.

”Hands.”

She held her hands out in front of her. Expecting the cuffs back. I gently took her hands and placed them on the pushbar of a shopping cart.

”Oh no. Why do I always get tied to the cart?”

I smiled. She still remembered the hardware store. And Kimberly. Seemed like a lifetime ago I'd tied her naked body to that shopping cart. I silently used short lengths of cord to secure her to the cart. She pulled idly at the bonds, not expecting to be able to work herself free. She didn't complain further. Probably frightened to.

I motioned the other girls over. I turned them around, one at a time and changed their handcuffs from behind their back to their fronts. Jane and Amy just waited quietly. Pulling at the restraints on their wrists.

”Alright girls. I'm going to let you go nuts here. Buy the good stuff. Make sure that you get staples. Bread. Peanut b.u.t.ter. Cold meats. Stuff like that. Milk. Eggs. You can get some cookies or something. Whatever you want as a treat. Don't go too nuts though. Remember whose carrying all this stuff home. Okay?”

Jane and Amy nodded. Christi was grimacing at the mention of peanut b.u.t.ter.

I watched as the girls slowly made their way down the first aisle. Jane and Amy reaching for items with their bound hands. Soon they were out of sight. The naked women softly talking amongst themselves as they did the shopping.

I wandered back to Kathleen and Nicole. I turned the gun over in my hands. Wondering how to release them. I decided not to release them at the moment.

I walked through the store. Towards the back. Finally I reached a door marked Employees Only. Private. I shrugged. I pushed the door open. There was a flight of steps leading upwards. I walked up the stairs and opened the door at the top. Lunch room on the right, manager's office on the left. I peeked into the lunch room. Couple of older guys smoking in the corner. I opened the door to the manager's office. The manager had a small office. Desk. Chair. Phone. And a small window that looked out over the store. The manager was a woman. Coincidentally named Jane according to the name plate on her desk. Jane Orton. She looked to be in her mid-thirties. Nice figure. Reddish hair. Business suit. She was talking to another younger woman across the small desk. Orton was holding a piece of paper in her hands. Almost studying it. The younger woman was dressed nicely as well. Dark skirt and blouse.

I ignored them, for now, and glanced out the private window. It was high and gave a good view of the store. I could see the nude girls slowly making their way down the third aisle. I couldn't tell what they'd thrown into the cart from here. I'm sure they were doing an adequate job. They knew what kind of mood I was in. Forgetting something would be cause for punishment.

I turned back to the women at hand. May as well have some company if I was going to wait for the others to finish shopping.

I studied the gun in my hands. Probably the easiest way to get them under control. I closed the door. I leaned back against a wall, just under a framed Escher print, and concentrated. The new Jane and the younger woman suddenly began to resume their conversation. Unaware of my presence.

”... and I have a head for numbers. Have a look at my math marks. Miss Orton ... who's that?”

The younger woman had just noticed me. Jane looked up and screamed as she saw me.

”Who? Who are you?” after her initial startled reaction, Jane had raised her right hand over her breast and calmed fairly quickly. Calm under fire.

”It doesn't really matter who I am.” I tapped the gun idly against my thigh. Jane's eyes immediately glued to the gun. The younger woman shrank back in her chair. Really uncertain about this situation, but not really frightened yet. But I wasn't sure that she'd seen the gun either. Her view of it was blocked by my thigh.

”What do you want? I can't open the safe. Brinks is the only one that can do that. How did you get in here?”

Jane had begun to raise her hands, like in Hollywood. The younger girl had finally seen the gun. She also began to raise her hands.

”Listen to me. I'm not interested in your safe. Keep calm and n.o.body will get hurt. Understand?”

The two women nodded.

”Put your hands down. You look silly. I know that you don't have any weapons. Why would you?”

Both women lowered their hands and held them lightly at their sides.

”Wh-what do you want from us, then. If you don't want money.” Jane stammered.

”First of all, I'd just like to know who you both are.”

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