F Campbell - Golden Wrists

Elizabeth pouted prettily. “Spoil sport!” She laughed at my dilemma. “I’ll get you handcuffed one of these days, darling. It’s something nice for both of us to look forward to. Stop worrying about your precious little hands.”

Suddenly inspired. I grasp the metal restraints and clicked both cuffs tight around my left wrist. “There, that’s the best place for them,” I said triumphantly. “I honestly don’t trust you.” I held up my steel encircled wrist. “This is all the handcuffing you’re ever going to do with me.”

“But I’ve got the key, darling...”

“So what! I’ll wear them as lovely, heavy bracelets.”

It was a gorgeous, wonderful game that left us laughing and in each others arms. I forgot the handcuffs before they’d been on my wrists ten minutes. If knowledge of Elizabeth’s possession of the key sent the familiar tingling up my spine. I saw it only as a bonus to everything else we shared.

Airports are wonderful. You forget all about everything and luggage and the time. No one noticed my handcuffed wrist. I used the journey to tell Elizabeth about Naomi’s island in the sun, about Honey and Thea, and my beloved Ivory. As I tried to tell Elizabeth what to expect I realized how little I actually know about the island, which the Estate so casually owned, and on which Naomi reigned as Queen with her three darling captives in as strange and bizarre a Court as the world had ever seen. Elizabeth listened avidly, eyes shinning and breathless with curiosity to make the steel upon my wrist weigh with a hot insistence I found intensely pleasurable. Knowing full well I would have allies in Naomi and the girls. I could have cared less.

“No men at all?” Elizabeth could hardly believe.

“Only Thorpe, the butler, and Blandish, the gardener.” I assured her joyously. “Isn’t that enough?”

“Gosh, yes!” Elizabeth was thinking hard as the plane droned its way towards a female paradise. “It’s lovely not having to worry about men, and what they do, and what they want. But these three girls ... Can I cane their bottoms?”

“Of course not! You’ll be a guest.”

“Well. I’ve been a prisoner so long, darling, it would be nice to sample the other side. You mean they wouldn’t stand for it?”

“Ask them when we get there. Goodness knows what Naomi and her three handcuffed maidens get up to. You can find out for yourself.”

The closer we got to Plessious, the more I remembered Hugo Markham. He had retained me in New York to press his legal claim for a share of the Estate. I told Elizabeth about him, also, and voiced my curiosity as to where he was, and the things he might still do. Since he was male. Elizabeth showed no interest, leaving me wondering what sort of cad Herbert had to be.

It was not until we were on the last lap of our journey, the supply ship to Plessious, that the full enormity of what we were doing struck home. Naomi and I had previously been on opposite sides of a legal fence, and the defeats my client, Hugo Markham, and I had suffered had rankled me a long time. I had to wonder how much of our battles might still irk the uninhibited creature we were about to visit. When I spoke of such sentiments to Elizabeth, she waved them aside with an imperious hand, and told me to leave everything to her. And wouldn’t it be best to unlock the handcuffs from my wrist in case they gave a false impression. Doubtfully, i agreed.

Blandish was on the jetty to look after whatever business the supply ship might have with Naomi’s island. Nothing every surprised Blandish but his sense of what was proper prompted his query, “Shouldn’t you young ladies be taking your clothes off? If I had known you were coming, I would have brought handcuffs.”

“We brought our own,” Elizabeth assured him in the same spirit of doing the right thing. “I think I should leave myself clothed until I’ve meet Naomi. Diane can do as she pleases.” Mischievously she placed a kiss upon his cheek, and thereafter, I knew Blandish was on our side. Thus we arrived at the big house which was a replica of the old and bore the same name of Rockley. My heart was thudding hard because I was about to see Ivory again.

It was Honey of the platinum hair who took the mail from Blandish’s hands and viewed me doubtfully. She, herself, was as naked as they come and wore her handcuffs in front with the unconscious grace I remembered so well, and envied so much. Naomi’s three naiads were something for the book. Honey surveyed Elizabeth with somewhat more favor than reserved for me, Led by the golden skinned beauty, we marched to Naomi’s office.

The sudden appearance of Elizabeth may have been a delight but the advent of myself was not. Naomi listened politely to what I had to say, and as I said it. I realized how poor our story was. What it amounted to was our asking for refuge for a relative of Naomi’s. Honey discreetly stood to one side and said no word but was obviously there as a safeguard in our intrusion. Having listened to all I had to say, Naomi inquired, reasonably enough, “What on earth are you going to do here!”

“Enjoy sun and freedom.” said Elizabeth promptly.

“Why didn’t you phone first?”

“I wasn’t sure of our reception,” I admitted. “Look, Naomi, we’re in trouble and we need help. Please let us stay.”

The air was suddenly tense, and a silence lengthened until Naomi said, “Of course you can stay. I’m not going to cast you to the wolves. But you know how we do things on Plessious, are you sure that’s what you want?”

It took a little while to sink in. Having had a good look at Honey.

Elizabeth caught on instantly, but I was slow in observing the principle behind her statement. “I think you’re saying you want us to take our clothes off and be handcuffed,” Elizabeth said cheerfully. “You want us the same way as Honey is. I don’t mind a bit so long as whatever you do to me you do to Diane.” She turned the radiance of her smile upon both Naomi and myself and I knew for certain I was lost.

Naomi did her best imitation of The Sphinx and I knew for sure we still had a little way to go. “What we’ve just determined is routine,” she said evenly. “You can’t expect to come here and not conform. But what I’m concerned with now is your sincerity. You’re both adult and you’re taking a lot for granted, including me. Would you be willing to accept a test?”

Elizabeth instantly exclaimed, “Of course we would! Honest, Naomi, this is serious for both of us.”

I longed to tell my companion to keep silent but it was too late, Naomi knew she had a good thing going and, ignoring me, asked Elizabeth. “Supposing I asked you both to accept a quite severe whipping as proof of all you’ve told me, what would you say?”

I was, not surprised, Elizabeth was. But she was on the uptake with laughter as though Naomi had said something funny. “Everyone connected with your silly old Estate has the fixation about whipping girls. I’m surprised you don’t all get whipped regularly before breakfast.” She smiled at Naomi and I brightly as though inviting comment.

The lawyer in me said “shut up” so that’s what I did. Elizabeth would get us into trouble but would be equally gifted in getting us out. I wished I hadn’t had that trouble with Naomi long ago. Things now began to get worse instead of better. “Well, anyway, it’s silly to whip both Diane and me, so why don’t you just whip Diane. I understand you’re not in love with each other?”

Elizabeth made it sound like the solution to everything. “I think that’s a lovely idea,” said Naomi sweetly.

I was outraged, They were both looking at me expectantly so I said the obvious, “Forget it. A stay on Plessious is not worth a marked up skin. You’re both being offensive.” I looked straight at Naomi. “I’d be grateful if you’d call that water taxi service on the mainland to come and pick me up.” To Elizabeth I said, “You’d be wise to come with me but suit yourself.”