The Steel Collar

Chapter 2 - The Cage and the Deal

"LET ME OUT YOU BASTARDS!"

Lisa shook the bars for the countless time. She sat back against the cage wall. The stone cell was only three foot high and she could barely lie down along the length of it. She had woken in the cage, without her shoes but still dressed in the suit she had worn on the plane. She touched the steel band on her neck, why were they making her wear this. She had immediately felt its weight when she had woken up and after trying to pull it from her neck she had gathered her wits and simply reached beside her neck to release the catch. There was no release. She turned it slowly, carefully, because it fitted rather closely. There was no release, no catch, only a small, heavy lock, and a place where a tiny key might fit. It had been locked on her throat! . She pulled angrily at the ring of the choker, the snug band barely shifted. The amber stone was gone it must had fallen out, or been taken out, before she was put in the cage. She kicked at the wide metal gate sealing the mouth of the cage. The padlock rattled against the lock of the door. She looked out at the identical cages, stacked two high on the far side of the room, all cut out of the pale stonewall. She had tried to look out but the cage bars were slightly inset, preventing her seeing above or beside her. She took off her suit jacket making a small pillow and lay down in the cage. She resigned herself to the fact that she was not going to get out until someone unlocked the gate.

Lisa struggled to her knees as someone came to stand in front of the cage. She tried to peer up but could not see past the overhanging roof. Lisa lunged as she saw Carl crouch to see into her cage. He did not flinch as her grasp ended just short of him. She pushed her arm hard through the bars trying to reach him. She yanked back in pain as he slapped the top of her hand. He opened a manila folder, the same he had read from on the plane. "What do we have here?" flicking to the second page, "untrained slave, age 31, a bit small breasted, 5 foot 3, dark natural blond, champion athlete in youth but now needs a few more trips to the gym, large shoulders and good hips, stubborn and willful, shy in groups. Good summary slut?"

"Let me go you psycho, you cannot keep me here, people know I am here, people will miss me, they know where I am" Lisa was screaming.

"My company doesn't deal with kidnappers. You won't get a penny from them. People know where I AM."

He reached into the folder and pulled out a newspaper, which he laid down in front of her. Lisa scanned the front of the paper, she cried out as she read the main story. "Private Jet disappears, all feared lost." She read down the article in horror, it mentioned her by name. Lisa screamed and threw herself against the barred door. She stopped screaming as she saw her captor get up to leave.

"NO WAIT, PLEASE WHAT DO YOU WANT? JUST TELL ME WHAT YOU WANT. PLEASE I HAVE MONEY,"

Carl left slamming the door on her cries. She stared in despair at the paper; they had given up the search believing the plane had plunged into deep-ocean. No one knew she was here, they thought she was dead. They were not kidnappers, to kidnap someone the other party had to believe the hostage was alive. What did he mean untrained slave? She was suddenly conscious again of the heavy band encircling her neck; she touched it, frightened, putting her finger inside the rim of the metal. There was only a half-inch or so between its metal and her throat. She locked her fingers in the band at her throat, trying to tear it from her neck. It was not a piece of jewelry. It was a collar.

Carl returned an hour later, Lisa lay nervously pressed against the back of the cage.

"I see you've used the facilities."

Lisa looked, embarrassed, at the bucket at the side of the cage. She could not hold it any longer and had been forced to squat and pee into the bucket.

"Please can I have some water, it's so hot in here."

"Just what I've come to talk to you about. I have some water and some food here for you."

He placed a bowl of water and a bread roll down beside her cage. She went to reach for the bowl but he kicked it out of her reach.

"Please I need some water."

"First I need something from you, quid pro quo, as they say. I have some more jewellery for you; I know you said you don't like jewellery but the necklace looked so good around that lovely neck."

He emptied a black canvas sack he had placed on the floor beside the food and water. Four metal bracelets clattered onto the stone floor. Lisa backed away from the cage door shaking her head. Each bracelet was like a small version of her collar, complete with dangling ring. They were all opened. He kicked them towards her cage; she remained silent shaking her head.

"Ok, when you're ready to drink, you know what to do, wrist and ankles, oh and remove your tights before you put on the anklets, rings on the inside please."

He stood up and for the second time that day, she heard the door slam as he left.

It was not long before she reached for the cuffs. They were heavy, made of thick steel, almost as wide as her collar. The two larger ones were obviously for her ankles, but both sets would fit snugly; it was if they were made for her. She unclipped her watch, sliding it from her hand and placed an open wrist cuff on her lap. She tried to remain calm, telling herself it was just like wearing the silver bracelet she had once owned. She placed her wrist into one half of the open cuff and gently lifted the other side of the cuff till it almost closed. She stopped short of locking it, shaking her wrist clattering the cuff from her wrist to the floor. She wiped her brow. She was hot and thirsty. She knew he would not give her water until she put on the cuffs; she was just delaying the inevitable. She quickly picked up the cuff, slipped it around her wrist and clicked it shut. She pushed the cuff down on her wrist, testing the fit. She could push it up her arm slightly but she realised she would never be able to slip it off her hand. She lifted the cuff looking at the ring dangling from her wrist. She remembered he had said rings on the inside. With a bit of difficulty due to its oval shape, she twisted the cuff around on her wrist. Trying not to think what she was doing or the purpose of the steel bands she put on the second cuff. It was a struggle to remove her tights in the cramped cage but she finally managed to remove them leaving them in a bundle beside the cage door. As she moved the rings tapped against the cuffs. She pulled her shirtsleeves over her wrists, covering the bracelets. She did not want to see them.

It was almost two hours before Carl returned. Lisa felt dizzy from the heat and her mouth was so dry she could hardly speak.

"Good girl, I knew you were a bright one. Now I want you to kneel with your back against the gate, do it quickly or I'll leave you to think about it till tomorrow."

Lisa was initially going to refuse, but she knew she did not want to spend the night with this thirst. She wearily crawled to the cage entrance and knelt with her back against the bars. She half-heartedly tried to pull away as Carl took hold her the left wrist cuff and pulled her hand behind her. She felt something lift up and hook through the ring of the cuff. He twisted her wrist so she was unable to turn around.

"Other wrist" commanded Carl.

Lisa reluctantly placed her right arm behind her. Carl pulled her wrists together and she heard a metallic click. As Carl released her she tried to pull her arms back around in front of her, but she was not surprised to find them locked together. As she shook the cuffs, she felt the padlock hanging down against the small of her back. To her surprise, Carl unlocked the cage door and motioned her out. The door was very low and she was forced to duck as she stumbled out on her knees. She heard a rattle of metal and looked up in time to see Carl reaching towards her with a two loops of chain. He held a padlock threaded through the end loop of a long shiny chain. Lisa tried to back away but with his free hand, he grabbed her hair and pulled her head back. She felt him fumble with the front of the collar and then screamed as she heard the padlock close around the ring. She staggered to her feet and made a run for the door. The neck chain stopped her short and she was almost pulled off balance as Carl yanked her back. He shortened his grip on the chain and pulled her down. The collar dug into the back of her neck as it pulled her to the floor. Lisa screamed and struggled against the wrist cuffs. There was no questioning the purpose of her neck wear now. She was leashed. Her restrained arms prevented her from stopping her slow descent and she was forced to struggle to her knees. He stepped on the chain forcing her to kneel, bent over, with her cheek pressed to the ground. She gave up pulling and struggling. He picked up a smaller length of chain, each end dangling with the familiar steel padlock. He straddled her, sitting on her back. Lisa groaned under his weight. She felt her ankles pulled closer together and the familiar click of padlocks as they locked onto the dangling rings of the ankle cuffs.

"Remain kneeling," he stood up, climbing off her back. She knelt upright and stared at her captor. He held her neck chain loosely in his hands. She felt the weight of the chain pull on the collar ring. She sobbed. She was leashed. She wore a chain leash.

"Drink" with a gentle tug on the chain he signalled her over to the bowl of water.

She stumbled forward on her knees shuddering at the sound of her ankle chain dragging behind her. Lisa leant forward and, sighing with relief, lapped at the water in the bowl. She knew he was deliberately trying to humiliate her, but at this moment, the refreshing taste of the water blanked out any thought of rebellion. She felt pressure on the front of the collar as Carl signalled her back to her knees, reluctantly she complied.

"Good, you respond well to leash commands."

He held out a small piece of bread in the palm of his hand and gestured her to eat. She did not move. Lisa was unsure whether to give him the satisfaction of eating from his hand.

"You need to eat, if you are going to escape, you have to be fit" he laughed at his own joke and gestured again with the food.

She knew she had to stay strong, he was right, she'd look for a way out of this, he would let his guard down at some point and she was determined to be ready. She looked at him defiantly and snatched the bread from his hand. He continued to feed her the roll, allowing her occasionally to lap water from the bowl. When the water was almost empty and the roll gone, he roughly wiped her mouth clean of the crumbs.

"Please let me go, I can pay you, I won't tell anyone, just let me out of here, I know you're not responsible for this"

"You will speak only when spoken to slut and do not eyeball me, head down" he reinforced his command by pulling down on her leash. She quickly lowered her head.

"Feel the steel on your body, you are helpless, do you realise that? You depend on us for everything. You are chained and leashed. If I say follow, whether you come willing or not, you will follow this chain. Are you going to be obedient slut? "

He rattled the coils of chain in his hands.

"I asked you if you are obedient."

"Yes" Lisa mumbled.

"You will refer to all men as Master and all women as mistress do you understand me. There isn't anyone on the island who is lower than you. You're an untrained and unnamed slut. So I'll ask you again are you obedient"

"Yes master"

"Say it like you believe it"

Lisa repeated the phrase louder.

"Good I think we're going to get on just fine, look forward and open your mouth wide."

Lisa swallowed her tears. She would get through this. She knew he would make a mistake, until then she decided to follow instructions. Carl moved behind her, as she tentatively opened her mouth. He quickly pushed a large rubber ball into her mouth. She struggled trying to push it out. "Don't struggle and damage your nice teeth, come on take it all in" Lisa felt the ball sink deeper into her mouth, he pulled back the leather straps, pulling the gag a couple of notches tighter and buckling it shut. She breathed nosily through her nose. She stretched her mouth trying to get her tongue comfortable beneath the large ball. A large drop of drool fell onto her knees as her mouth tried to lubricate the obstruction.

"That's better, no more of your belly aching, you will soon realise talking, like food and water, is a privilege. Come on we're off to see your new owner"

Grabbing her arms, he lifted her to her feet. She stared down at her chained ankles. A foot of chain connected her ankle cuffs. She complained into the gag as he tugged her forward. She shuffled forward, the ankle chain forcing her to take small steps as she was led from the room