Sue

Sue checked that she had everything she would need. This was going to be her toughest ever challenge, and she knew she had only two days to succeed. After that, it didn’t bear thinking about.

She had booked the cottage in the middle of nowhere deliberately. There were no neighbours, no street lights, and the roads were hardly more than dirt tracks that had seen few cars in a long time.

The locking cuffs were made by her own company, and she knew what would happen to them should she fail in her challenge. It was not something she wanted, but that was the challenge. To push herself to the limits, knowing that should she fail, it would be the end of her life as she knew it.

The gag, also made by her own company, filled her mouth. No words would escape it, and few sounds other than a moan would be heard from more than a few feet away. This, Sue had already donned, and fastened behind her head. Breathing through her mouth was now impossible, which would only serve to make the challenge even harder. The blindfold, which she would put on almost at the end, would cover half her face. No light, even should there have been one, would filter behind the blindfold.

Until Sue got home safely, she would see nothing. This was not going to help her in her challenge, as she did not know the area well, and a single step off the given path, would lead her away from her finishing point. If she moved off the track, she could be walking for days, never knowing where she was or what was around her.

The first trip. Would be a trial run, and only half a mile. She could still go wrong, she knew that, but her journey would be guided by the gravel path on which she stood.

She was naked, and held the cuffs in her hands. In a moment she would cover her eyes, place her hands behind her, and lock the cuffs, the key was at the cottage, waiting for her.

It had taken her over an hour to get back to the cottage. Once she had taken a false step, and it had taken her some time to locate the path again. Even the shorter journey had not been easy, and she had the real test yet to come.

She would take the test the following day. Sitting with the television turned on, but not actually watching it, Sue thought about what she was doing. The journey she was planning was five miles long, and she would be allowing herself two days in which to get back to the cottage. If she failed? It didn’t bear thinking about.

The trial journey had only involved the gag, cuffs and blindfold. Tomorrows would involve a lot more.

She knew she was taking a huge risk, but that was what she had always lived for. Without risks, life was boring. And at twenty three years of age, she was already a risk taker.

She checked the bag again. Everything she would need was in there, except a way out of her predicament. To get free, she would have to get back to the cottage, and within the given time. Exactly thirty four hours after she started.

She looked again at the cuffs. Her own company had made these, not for sale. They could never be sold commercially, they were a one off prototype.

They looked like normal cuffs, with one slight difference. On each cuff was a small metal box, which contained a gel. The reason these cuffs could not be sold commercially, was that box. After twenty four hours the box would fracture, and the gel would start to slowly seep out onto the lock of the cuffs. Ten hours later, the gel would start to solidify, and less than two hours later, the locks would be sealed forever.

If Sue didn’t get back to the cottage in time, the cuffs would be sealed forever. Even if she did get back on time, the locks would need forcing open, and with her hands behind her back, that would not be easy to do.

The gag, also made by her company, was self inflating, as she had found out yesterday. Once inserted into her mouth, she bit the small tube at the front, and air would seep into the gag. It would completely fill her mouth before it stopped growing, so even a scream would not escape her lips.

Once her journey started, she could reply on no-one but herself. And the ankle cuffs she was going to wear, would only serve to impede her journey. The chain between the cuffs was twelve inches, so she would be able to take normal steps, but being that short, would not allow her to run.

The last item was the chastity belt. She had made this herself, to be sure it fitted perfectly. One strap went around her waist, and was secured by a padlock, at the front, away from her hands. Another strap fitted from front to back, between her legs, and tight to her pussy. This was important, as it would keep the dildo she would use, deep inside her.

As she looked at the things in the bag, she shuddered. What if it all went wrong? What if someone caught her?

Neither of these bore thinking about. She knew she was going to do this regardless. She had to do. It was, to her, the ultimate challenge. And one she could not afford to fail at.

* * * * *

The following morning the sun shone brightly, as Sue made her way to her start point. She wore only a thin top and a skirt. The less she wore heading out, the less clothing she would actually be throwing away before the return journey home.

In some places, the gravel path disappeared for a few yards, and Sue knew that those would be the hardest places. If she lost her direction where there was no gravel. It would take her ages to find it again, and that would add time she couldn’t afford to her journey.

Thirty six hours after starting, she would need to be at home, free of the cuffs. Any delay would be catastrophic.

It had taken Sue over two hours to get to her start point. In places, the brush had scraped her legs. She hadn’t realised they would be that close to the path, and this was going to add another hazard to her trip. The skirt had protected her a little, but on the way home, she would be naked, and her legs would take the full effects.

Undressing, Sue placed the bag on the ground an opened it up. Laying the items out in order, she picked up the gag first. She pressed it into her mouth, and fastened it tightly behind her head. Once she bit the small tube at the front, it would inflate.

The next thing was the chastity belt. Wrapping it around her waist, she pulled it tight, perhaps a little tighter than she had anticipated, as she had breathed in before locking it closed. Her waist had shrunk by three inches, so the belt had no chance of slipping down past her hips. It was now on until she got home. The dildo came next. It was eight inches long, and quite thick. Though no virgin, Sue had never had a cock as big as this, and it would be inside her for many hours. Adding the lubrication to it, Sue bent her legs and slowly began to feed the dildo inside her. It felt larger than she had anticipated, filling her. She worked it in and out, slowly at first, and then forcing a little more in with each thrust. Even so, it took a good ten minutes before she was able to take it all, and pull the other strap from behind her, between her legs, and close the lock at the front. Even standing still, she could feel it filling her up. This was going to be harder that she had thought. She walked around the small clearing a while, getting used to feeling it move inside her. It was definitely not going to be easy.

The ankle cuffs were next. It was hard bending down to fasten them with the dildo inside her. She knew she should have put the ankle cuffs on first. But it was too late now, and it took her a long time before the cuffs were in place, the chain laying on the floor between her legs. It looked shorter now that it was on.

Looking at the blindfold and the cuffs, Sue wondered if she could go through with this. She hadn’t even started the journey home yet, and she was already uncomfortable. But she knew she couldn’t stop just there. She needed to test herself, and she picked up the cuffs and the blindfold. Placing the blindfold over her eys, she made sure she was facing in the right direction. Once the blindfold was in place, she would see nothing. It wouldn’t matter if it were day or night, Sue would know no difference.

She would not know how long she had been walking, or how far. There were no churches close by to ring out the hours. She had chosen this place for its total isolation.

At last, the blindfold was in place, and Sue’s world had turned to night. As yet, she could still remove the blindfold, but she knew she wouldn’t. She began to breath slowly and deeply, and then bit the small tube at the front of the gag. Immediately, the gag started to inflate, to grow, pressing itself to the sides of her mouth, forcing it open.

At first, Sue gagged with the reflex, but she soon got used to it, but was now breathing entirely through her nose.

The cuffs felt heavy in her hands. But there was no turning back now. Slowly, she placed her hands behind her back, and positioned the cuffs. She felt the metal encompass her wrists, and, even though she was already blindfolded, closed her eyes, as she closed the cuffs.

The clicking sound as they closed around her wrists sounded the start of her own personal clock. She now had no choice at all. She either made it home, or ?

It still didn’t bear thinking about.

By moving her feet from side to side, Sue could get an idea of how wide the gravel path was, though the shortness of the chain did impede her progress. She knew she was walking far too slowly, but was fearful of coming off the track. Her other fear, was falling over, and turning on the ground. If she stood up and found the gravel path, but was heading the wrong way, she would never know. She had no idea how far, or to where the gravel path led in the opposite direction, but it was certainly not to the safety of the cottage, and freedom from her bonds.

She knew she had to be cautious, but she now feared she was being too cautious.

Within ten minutes her jaw was aching badly. The gag had forced her mouth wide open, and she could neither close nor open it to relieve the pressure. Breathing through her nose was not as easy as she had anticipated, and she now regretted having used the gag in the first place. But there was no way to remove it. The deflator valve was at the cottage, waiting for her. Until she got there, there was nothing she could do to ease the pressure at all.

She also knew, that had she been able to open her mouth any wider, in an attempt to relieve the pressure, the gag would simply have inflated to fill the void. It had only stopped getting bigger because her mouth was totally filled.

At first, Sue didn’t realise what was happening. The weather had cooled a little, but then came the drizzle. It was not something she had ignored, it was simply something that had never entered her head.

Ever since arriving at the cottage, the sun had shone brightly, with no hint of rain. It never even entered her head that it may rain at any time during her challenge, but she could already feel the drizzle changing to rain.

She hoped and prayed that it would stop quickly, but the rain drops seemed to grow heavier, more frequent. Within minutes, she knew she had problems, as the rain came almost like a monsoon. She could feel the rain drops hitting her unprotected body like small bullets. There was no escape from them, and her hair was already drenched. She knew, from her trip to the start point, that there were bushes somewhere to her left, where she could perhaps shelter. But what if the rain continued for a long time, and what if, when it stopped, she lost her direction? Either way, she would be putting herself in jeopardy. She knew she had no choice, but to go on, and hope the rain stopped.

Another problem had also arisen. When she had done her trial run the day before, she had worn shoes, but now she was barefoot, and the gravel that was her guide, was also cutting into the soles of her feet.

She was closer to the start than the end, and she feared her feet would be cut to ribbons by the time she eventually got back to the cottage.

She knew she could come off the gravel track, but the gravel was her only guide. There were going to be places where there was none anyway, and she was already fearful of losing her direction there, but to come off the gravel track at this point, could be the biggest mistake she ever made.

Slowly, she continued. The rain hammered down on her, and she was already soaked and cold. Given the choice, Sue would happily have abandoned her challenge at that point, but she couldn’t do that. If she failed to make it back to the cottage in time, the cuffs would lock, permanently. And she would be unable to call anyone to assist her.

Her challenge really was a matter of life and death. If she didn’t get the cuffs off on time, she knew she would starve to death, if she didn’t drown in this rain first.

With her head down she tried to walk faster, but the chain between her ankles wouldn’t let her. She wished, now, that she had made it longer, but it was too late for regrets. Too late for any regrets at all.

Almost without warning the gravel path under her feet started to disappear. Was this one of those places that she would not have the gravel to guide her? Or was she wondering off track?

She stopped, and using her feet tried to feel for the gravel. She could feel it a little behind her, but her toes were touching only grass. This was the part of the journey she had not looked forward to. She would have to hope she was walking in a straight line, and would come to the gravel path again soon. But the persistent rain was hampering her. She knew she would have to keep her head up to try to keep in a straight line, but that meant the rain was hammering her face, the part not covered by the blindfold or the gag.

She was already having problems breathing, and the rain was making it even harder.

The lack of gravel path meant she had travelled a lot less distance than she had hoped. She was hoping to be much further one, as it felt as if she had been walking for hours.

The rain and her restricted breathing was not helping, nor was the chain between her ankles. She knew, now, that she had perhaps gone too far in her challenge. Perhaps she should not have used the gag. But there was nothing she could do about it now. With her mouth forced open, as it was, she couldn’t even bite into the gag to try to deflate it.

Gingerly, and slowly, she moved forwards, hoping she was walking in a straight line, and would find the path again soon. She was fully aware that walking in a straight line with the eyes closed, was difficult at the best of times. Already she had almost come off the gravel track a few times, but here, she did not have the gravel to guide her. any deviation from her line could be her downfall.

The grass underfoot was wet and slippery. She knew that if she slipped and fell, it would be extremely hard to get up again. And if she did get up, in which direction would she be facing?

The dildo buried in her pussy was getting more and more painful with every step. It felt as if it was driving into her stomach, but she knew that wasn’t possible. If there was a way, Sue knew she would abandon her challenge on the spot, but that was not possible. The keys to her freedom lay a long way from her. Her only way was to get to the cottage.

With every step she moved her feet from side to side as much as the chain would allow, searching for the return of the gravel path. It seemed to take forever to walk across the grass carefully, so she wouldn’t fall. Her relief was beyond expression she her feet once more found the gravel. It had been slightly to her left, and had she not been seeking it to the side, would have missed it completely. Where she would have ended up would have been anyone’s guess, but certainly not back at the cottage.

Sue was cursing herself for putting herself in this predicament. She knew that one day her need for more and more challenging tasks would one day kill her. But she could not help herself. Like smokers need the next cigarette, or alcoholics need the next drink, Sue always needed one more challenge, one more risk, and each one harder than the one before.

This challenge was just the same. If she didn’t feel in danger, if escape was too easy, she didn’t feel she had achieved anything. But this time, she really could feel the danger. She had only left herself the single option. Get back to the cottage, or suffer the consequences.

The gravel once more hurt her feet, but Sue was now making better time. She had no idea how far she had come, only that her feet must be badly cut from the gravel path. But at least the rain had stopped.

But now there was another problem that she had failed to consider. She needed to pee. It hadn’t occurred to her that she would need to do. It wasn’t that she had ignored it, simply one more thing that had not entered her head when she set the challenge up.

She knew thee would be no-one around to see her pee, but she also knew that her legs would smell of urine the rest of the way home. She stopped for a moment, and allowed herself the opportunity to pee, feeling it running from both sides of the chastity belt, and down her legs. It was hot, and the sense of relief was luxurious, but now the leather strap between her legs was wet, and she knew it would soon start to chafe her skin.

Inside the blindfold, tears again fell from Sue’s eyes. She told herself that she would never put herself in this position again.

Around her, unknown to Sue, the day became evening, and slowly moved towards night. To her, there was neither day nor night, simply pitch blackness and the slow passage of time.

She had no idea how much further she had to go, but she did know that there was still one more part of the path without gravel that she had to negotiate. But this part, was longer than the previous one. Her only guide would be the bushes to one side. These, as she had discovered on her way to the start point, bore sharp needle like thorns. She didn’t want to come into contact with them, but to stray from them would mean disaster. Even now, one wrong change of direction would take her miles from the cottage, with no way of finding her way back to it.

The dildo was causing her agonising pain, and she needed to rest, to sit down. But she knew she couldn’t. without the use of her hands and eyes, sitting down, even for a minute, would bring it’s own problems. Standing again would be very difficult, and even harder with the dildo so deep inside her. She knew that rest was out of the question, and slowly moved onwards.

The cuffs had been cutting into her ankles for some time, and this was slowing her down. The chain also felt heavy, and she could hear it clinking with each step. Had she really needed to make the chain so short?

Suddenly, without warning, the gravel disappeared again. She was now two miles from home, but perhaps the hardest two miles. The section she now entered was the hardest part, no gravel to guide her. She already knew the bushes would cut her legs, but it was that, or trust her own judgement to be able to walk straight for half a mile, blindfolded. The previous grass section had told her that she would possibly go off track. And now she was tired as well.

Moving to her left she could feel the bush touching her leg. Almost immediately, as needle thorns attacked her, and she cried out into the gag. Though no-one would have heard her even if she wasn’t gagged, the gag itself allowed no sound past it.

Slowly, even more slowly that earlier, Sue began to negotiate the journey past the bushes. Each step was slow and deliberate, searching with her toes for any roots that may have been growing out from the bushes, and had the potential to trip her up.

She knew that time was running past faster than she had wanted, but still she felt she would be home long before the deadline. She could not be more than two miles away from her safety, with three miles already accomplished. Once past the grass section, and back on the gravel, she would be able to pick up her speed again.

Her legs were bleeding, she could feel that, the needle thorns working their own magic on her flesh. She wanted so much to move away from the bushes, but she knew she couldn’t. Tears fell copiously behind the blindfold, her whole body was in pain or ached. Her mouth was one source, being held so wide open and still for so long. And the dildo. Inside her pussy was on fire from the pain, but still she could do nothing but suffer the consequences of her own actions.

The rain started again. Slowly at first, but getting steadily harder. It was both refreshing, and disheartening at the same time. It was as if even nature herself was against Sue.

Only by sheer luck did she prevent herself falling over. One of the bushes had roots that travelled out onto her path, and had she not felt it with her toes, she would have stepped on it, and with the rain making it slippery, she would have most likely lost her footing.

She was tired, more than she had ever been before, but there could be no rest, no relaxation. She thought she heard a bird sing somewhere, but that couldn’t be. It couldn’t be near dawn already? How long had she been walking?

She had planned to be in bed in the cottage by dawn, and she was still a long way from it. She wanted to die on the spot, as the first bird was answered by a second, and a third. A new day was dawning, but for Sue, the old one was yet far from over.

How long it took, she didn’t know, but eventually, her toes hit gravel again. She checked with her feet to make sure it was actually the path, and not just a few stones. She cried with relief when she realised it was, in fact, the path.

She still had a mile and a half to go, but at least she now felt there was a light at the end of the tunnel. If only she could actually see the light, it would help.

Moving faster on the gravel track, she could feel the stones digging into her feet yet again. The rain slowed, but she could feel how wet and slippery the stones had become. Twice within the first few feet she had almost lost her footing. Though she wanted to run the last part, she knew she couldn’t move too fast. A slip, even now. Could be catastrophic to her.

It was then that another, more serious thought struck her. The cuffs would have released their charge, and would already be starting to seal the locks closed. She felt she still had plenty of time to get home, as long as the scientists had got their maths right about the time it took for the gel to solidify.

They had been tested on a computer, but not in real life. They were, after all, only a prototype, a one off. If the boffins had got their maths wrong, Sue would not know until it was too late.

Her urgency to complete the journey was making her rush, walking much faster than she should. The chain rattled loudly with each step, as the gravel moved slightly under her feet.

Even Sue knew that it as inevitable that, at this pace, and with such disregard she was in danger of tripping, but she knew she needed to get back to the cottage as fast as she could, and get the cuffs off.

There wasn’t a single part of Sue’s body that didn’t hurt or ache. She was very tired, and even though she knew she had to move faster, she was finding it hard to even walk at all. She had been on her feet for over twenty four hours, and only pure determination, and fear of failure, were keeping her moving at all.

Her feet were badly torn by the gravel underfoot, and she was limping badly, but still there was no stopping. If she stopped, even for a minute, she knew she would not restart again.

Her calves were in agony, and it was all she could do to stop herself crashing to the ground. The fear of the cuffs locking permanently was driving her forwards.

She had no idea how much time she had left, but she knew it was now passing faster than her legs were moving. If she failed, she knew the consequences. No-one, according to the letting agent, had been near or to the cottage in over five years. She didn’t have five years available to her while she waited for the next person for come by. She would have starved to death within days. Her weary body would not be able to sustain her for very long. Any nutrients and vitamins she had in her body, were being severely tested with this ordeal.

There was something suddenly wrong. She felt her foot slipping, and only just managed to stay on her feet. There was no gravel under her feet, but nor was there grass. It was cold, wet, and sticky.

Sue could not see the problem, but the heavy rain had caused a small subsidence, and the gravel had been washed away, leaving a six foot wide slurry of mud.

She stood still, fearing to move in case she lost her footing, but she knew she had no choice but to go on. But had she already taken a wrong turn somewhere? Was she still miles from the cottage, but going in the wrong direction? She knew that there should be gravel all the way to the concrete drive of the cottage, but there was none. Only wet, sticky slimy mud, that threatened to bring her to her defeat.

Slowly, very slowly, she inched her way forwards, hoping she was still going the right way. How long it took her, she had no idea, but she knew time was against her, and this was making things only worse.

She was almost through the mud when her foot caught the edge of a stone, and dug deep into the soft part of her flesh. She screamed into the gag, but at the same time lost her balance. She fought frantically to stay on her feet, but without the use of her arms to steady her, it was a losing battle.

Crashing heavily into the soft mud, she rolled over twice, the cuffs thrusting harshly into her back. Her wrists hurt badly, and she was sure she had broken one,.

Standing up was both difficult, and reluctant. The dildo still in her pussy hurt whenever she tried to move, and with her legs still chained, she could only struggle slowly.

Her brainwave came after the fourth failed attempt to stand up. She had, once again, landed on her back. She remembered something she had seen in a film, where the hero has his hands tied behind him, and manages to get them in front.

She wasn’t sure it would work in reality, but she knew she had to try.

Slowly, she forced her hands down the backs of her legs, whilst still on her back. Then, bring her knees to her chest, she slowly forced her hands under her feet. With a sigh of relief, her hands slipped in front of her, and that would allow her to get to her feet again. She knew she could never have done that had she still been on her feet.

Once she was standing, her hands went to her head, and began pulling frantically at the blindfold. It was locked behind her head, but she hoped the rain had made the leather wet enough to stretch, so she could get it off her eyes.

It took a good ten minutes before she could see any light at all filtering under the blindfold. She still couldn’t see, but at least she now had hope.

It took her another fifteen minutes to force the blindfold up over her eyes. She cursed herself for putting it on so tight, but at least now there was daylight, even if the daylight, after so long in pitch blackness, was blinding. She could only squint at first, but it was enough to be able to tell her how bad the damage had been to the path.

She could see the gravel path some eight feet away from her. Had she continued in the direction she was actually facing, she would have missed the cottage completely, and had she still been blindfolded, she would never have found her way to safety.

Now, using her arms, she was able to find her way to her feet, though the mud was still slippery, and she had to take care. Once on the gravel track, she could actually walk beside it, to save the soles of her, already torn, feet. The chain would still not let her take large steps, but at least she could now see light at the end of the tunnel. If only she knew what time it was, and how long she had left.

Every muscle ached as she slowly made her way alongside the gravel track. Now that she could see, she no longer had to walk on the sharp stones, and made slightly better time, but even so, she feared the worst. There was no physical evidence as to whether or not the cuffs had locked for good. Only when she came to unlock them would she know that.

But her other concerns were to get the dildo out of her pussy, and the gag from her mouth. The gag had been a bad idea right from the start, but it would be out soon. At least the gag and the chastity belt were not in danger of becoming permanent.

Even though Sue could now see where she was walking, the short space on the chain still made it slow going for her. She didn’t want to fall over again, even though she would at least have her hands almost free if she did. She took her time, taking deliberate steps. There was no use rushing anymore. She knew she had exceeded her time limit already. Another hour or so would make no difference, now. Either her boffins had got the time right,. Or they hadn’t. it was totally out of her hands.

She was more worried about how to get the cuffs cut off later. She would not be embarrassed about being caught in them, she could always explain that she was testing them, as was her right. After all, it was her company. It was how she would get there, still naked, and how would she explain that.

It took Sue over another hour before she saw the cottage, her final destination. Her pussy hurt, her feet were in agony, she could hardly feel her jaw, and her tongue seemed to be double it’s size, still trapped at the bottom of her mouth, where it had been since the gag had inflated.

As she made her final approach towards the cottage, another thought struck her like a hammer. What if someone had come by whilst she was out, and were still in the cottage. Her way back into the cottage was the back door, and that meant walking over the wooden decking. If there was anyone inside, they would hear the chain on the decking long before she reached the door in her state, Sue was in no position to defend herself, and escaping would be out of the question as well. The chain would stop her running, and anyone chasing her would catch up to her within a few feet.

She stood on the grass, hidden by trees, watching the cottage for signs of life. How long she stood, she didn’t know, and didn’t care. Before going on, she wanted to be sure she was still alone. Eventually, she knew she had no choice. All the keys she needed to free herself, were in the lounge, on top of the television. She either got to them, or stayed exactly as she was. She knew she had no choice really. Slowly, gingerly, she made her way towards the rear decking of the cottage. She climbed onto the wooden struts, and stopped, listening for any movement. She could hear nothing, save the sounds of the birds in the trees.

The chain sounded much too loud as she walked slowly towards the door. It had been left unlocked. She had expected to return with her hands behind her back still, and knew she would be in no position to unlock the door like that. Slowly, she placed her hands on the handle, and pressed it down, hearing the light click as the door opened. It was too late, now, even if someone were inside. She had sealed her fate. Still, she waited and listened. Only when she was sure she was alone did she venture further into the cottage, closing the door as quietly as she could.

Moving slowly she headed for the lounge, and the keys to her freedom. She thought she heard a noise, and stood stone still where she was, listening intently. But she could hear nothing. Her only hope now was to reach the keys. They would release her, though perhaps not her cuffs. That was something she would deal with later.

The lounge was silent as she entered it, standing by the open door, listening for movement anywhere in the cottage. Only when she was satisfied there was no-one there, did she move forwards. The keys were just as she had left them before starting her ordeal, as was the gag release valve. As she let the air out of her gag, her jaw moved, bringing a loud scream to her lips. Her mouth had been held in one place for so long, any movement, now, created a searing pain in her lower jaw. Her mouth was also very dry, and her tongue felt at least twice as big as normal.

It took her several minutes before she could move her mouth without screaming, even though it still hurt even to breathe through it.

Taking the green set of keys, she moved her hands towards her waist. As she unlocked the first strap of the chastity belt, she felt the harshness of the strap where she had urinated on it several times. Her clit and pussy had been rubbed raw by the hardening leather strap. As she moved her fingers to grab the end of the dildo, she screamed in pain. It was buried deep inside her, and she had to press her fingers past her swollen and painful pussy lips to find the end of the dildo. The relief as she finally felt it start to slide out, was immeasurable. But so was the pain. Her next task was the main strap of the belt, that around her waist. This, too, had got soaked, by the rain, and had hardened significantly. But it was the shock of cramps that sank her to her knees as she finally removed the belt.

The way it had held her waist tightly restricted had served its purpose better than she had anticipated. Though she had pissed a few times, she had avoided crapping, but now the belt had gone, she felt it immediately. Cramps, worse than any pain she could imagine. She knew she had to leave the other bonds in place, as she headed as fast as she could for the toilet, and relief.

Sue awoke in the dark, on the bathroom floor. She had no recollection of getting there, and had no idea what time it was. Obviously, it was night time, but other than that she was clueless. Slowly, she made her way to her feet, almost forgetting her ankles were still chained together. Finding the light switch she caught herself in the bathroom mirror. Her whole body seemed to be caked in dark mud. Her hair, normally well groomed and blonde, was full of mud, matted, and anything but well groomed. Though she had deflated the gag so she could breathe again. The gag itself was still in place, covering the lower half of her face. The image in the mirror was totally alien to her.

Slowly, she made her way back to the lounge, even forgetting to flush the toilet. She found the key for her ankle cuffs, and sat down on a chair, slowly bending forwards to unfasten the cuffs. Her ankles were swollen either side of the cuff on each ankle, and where the cuffs had been, was red raw. Even as she was unfastening them, she told herself she would never do this again. This had been one step too far for her. Lifting her arms up, and over her head, she was able to reach the strap holding the gag in place, and finally release it. Her jaw still ached, but not as badly as it had when she had first deflated the gag. At least, now, it was bearable.

Only the cuffs remained. She looked at the keys in her hands. What would she do if they failed to unlock? She was obviously well past her time limit, and she sat, looking at the cuffs, and then the keys. Even though she knew it would be a futile attempt, she knew she had to at least try to open them. Hours ago it would have taken supreme effort to fight the gel that had sealed them, and now, it would be impossible.

Slowly, she placed the key into the lock on her left wrist. She held her breath, as she tried to turn the key. She knew it wouldn’t turn, so to feel it do so, and hear a tell tale click, before the cuff flew open, was more than she could handle, emotionally. She sobbed loudly, as she moved the key to her other wrist, and felt that cuff, too, fly open as the key turned. She didn’t know what had happened. She felt immense relief, but at the same time, an anger she couldn’t explain.

Two days of suffering. Two days of forcing herself on when she wanted to give up. Two days fearing she would be locked inside the cuffs for ever. Sue stared at the cuffs in her hands. The reservoirs that held the gel, were empty. Only then did she realise she had not checked. She had assumed they would be filled, and ready for use. But they hadn’t been. They were simply cuffs, unless the gel was there.

Sue swore at herself, cursing what she had put herself through, and all for nothing.

“Next time”, she told herself. “I will make sure the gel is in them before I start out”

END

27.03.11