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		DAMSELS UNDER GLASS: THE SERIES
		Jodi's Story: R-E-S-P-E-C-T WITH A CHERRY ON TOP  ———————————————————————— by Van © 2005
		Chapter 3

Charlie did not "stick 'em up".  Instead, her expression turned even more disapproving.  She stepped forward, grabbed Jodi none-to-gently by the arm, and hustled her as far from the watching (and grinning) "hostages" as she could without leaving the main lab.  She made sure her back was towards the captives, and rounded on Jodi in an angry, whispered tirade.  "You little moronski!  Just because Margo's out of town, that doesn't give you a license to waltz around tying people up!"

Jodi chuckled, not the least bit intimidated by her diminutive Inner Circle Sister.  "Look who's calling who 'little'."

Charlie's face flushed with anger.  "Shut up and listen to me for once in your irresponsible life!" she hissed.  "You're gonna get yourself in serious trouble!  When she gets back, Margo'll have you skinned and mounted, after she lets Kat use you for her torture training dummy for several months!"

"Calm down," Jodi said quietly.  She looked over Charlie's head and winked at Jenny and Ronnie.  Both captives were continuing to watch Charlie's whispered dressing down of "Clandestine" Jodi with great interest (and amusement).

"Calm down??" Charlie shouted, then returned to whispering.  "Calm down?  You know you're not supposed to play these games with 'civilians'.  And outside the Biosphere?  What are you thinking??"

Jodi's smile turned even more smug.  "I'm thinking I'm not gonna get in any trouble whatsoever," she purred.  "It's a security drill."

Charlie was literally hopping mad.  "Ohhh—will you get serious?  Security drill?  Do you take me for an idiot?"

Jodi sighed (still smiling), and raised her voice to normal volume.  "Eve?  Would you please enlighten Doctor Paretsky vis-à-vis the official status of the security drill currently in progress?"

A second passed, then the disembodied voice of Eve-Prime sounded from the lab's ceiling speakers.  "Doctor, there is indeed a drill in progress, at this location.  Ms. Weber is acting the role of 'intruder', and her actions thus far are within the exercise protocol."

"You've got to be kidding!" Charlie huffed.

"The drill is an unscheduled test of the surveillance and security monitoring routines," Eve continued, "implemented by Executive Security Cadre Code Lambda."

Charlie stared at Jodi in wide-eyed surprise.

Jodi's smile broadened.  Angry or chagrined, Charlie was as cute as they come.  Elke's so lucky, she thought, and not for the first time.  She set the three rubber balls in her left hand down on a convenient table, and pulled the new roll of silver dermafoam tape off her left arm.  "I accept your apology," she purred, "now... turn around."

Charlie sighed, then affected a petulant frown.  "You're not fooling me," she whispered, then spun on her heel and put her hands behind her back.

Jodi positioned Charlie's hands palm-to-palm.  "Intertwine your fingers," she ordered, and the still angry pixie complied.  Soon, Charlie's fingers, hands, wrists, and forearms disappeared under tight, neatly overlapping bands of tape.  The wrapping continued up to her elbows, then around her arms, elbows, and torso, just below her breasts.  Jodi then knelt and wrapped her legs together, above the knees and around the ankles.  This time she didn't bother with binding the captive's insteps.  Charlie's knee boots weren't going to fall off.

Jodi stood, retrieved one of the balls, and rinsed it clean in a nearby sink.  She then held it before Charlie's pouting lips.  "Any last words?" she asked.

Eyes flashing, Charlie opened her mouth to speak—but before she could utter a single syllable, Jodi shoved the ball between her teeth and into her mouth.  It was a tight fit.  The semi-hard rubber sphere didn't fill her oral cavity completely, but it was far too large for her to swallow, accidentally or otherwise.  She forced a complaining growl past the intrusion, but did cooperate by holding her head still as Jodi wrapped three tight, overlapping bands of tape completely around her head, sealing her lips from just below her flaring nostrils to the point of her chin.

"There," Jodi said with a gloating smile.  She restored the tape roll to her forearm, rinsed the other two balls (all the while ignoring Charlie's continuing hostile glare), and strolled back to her other two captives.  "Who wants to go first?" she asked brightly.

"Me-me-me!" Jenny chanted, then squirmed forward and hopped off the lab table.  "Uh-oh!" she gasped as she wobbled on her bound feet.

Jodi hurried forward and caught her by the shoulders before she fell.  "Careful!" she chided, then looked back over her shoulder at Charlie.  "The closet!" she barked.

Charlie sighed, rolled her eyes in disgust, shuffled in place until she was facing the closet in question, and started slowly and carefully hopping towards its closed door.

Jodi turned back to Jenny.  "Open wide," she ordered.  The grinning captive complied, and a ball was popped into her mouth.  Jodi then turned to Ronnie and smiled, presenting the remaining ball.  "Hold this for me, would you?"

Ronnie rolled her eyes as well, but was clearly amused (like Jenny), rather than disgusted (like Charlie).  She opened her smiling mouth and accepted custody of the ball.

Jodi turned back to Jenny, held her hair out of the way with one hand as best she could, and carefully taped her lower face with the other.  The captive's expression as the tight bands encircled her head and the tape began to tighten and cure was priceless.  Jodi locked eyes with her prisoner and smoothed the tape over her lips with her gloved fingers.  "Poor, helpless damsel," she whispered, then spun her around and pointed her towards the closet.  "Off you go," she purred, and gave her a resounding slap on the right butt cheek.

Jenny's eyes crossed, and she yelped through her gag.  She then turned and gave her captor a resentful, pouting stare.

Jodi laughed.  That adorable, excited twinkle was still shining in Jenny's eyes.  Jodi waved a warning finger in the captive's face.  "Be careful," she said.  "Don't fall.  This time I won't be there to catch you."

Jenny sighed, turned, and started hopping towards the closet, picking up speed as she gained confidence.

Jodi turned to Ronnie, grabbed her by the waist, slid her forward, and helped her hop off the table.  Frowning in concentration, she took three careful turns of tape around Ronnie's head and across her lips.  

Ronnie focused on her captor's face as she worked.  She was a little surprised the aerobics instructor was such a skillful captor.   She's had practice, the helpless historian decided, maybe a lot of practice.

Jodi stripped more tape from the roll, anchored it across Ronnie's already tape-bound elbows, then passed the roll around her torso and under her full breasts, pinning the brunette's already bound arms to her body.  She continued wrapping until Ronnie's torso and arms were covered down to her waist. 

Jodi took a glance towards the closet.  Charlie was waiting by the door, glaring defiantly, and Jenny was still in transit.  Jodi made sure her body was between Ronnie and the other two prisoners, then turned back to Ronnie, and smiled evilly.  "There," she whispered, "that'll hold you."  She then leaned close and slid her right hand up Ronnie's skirt.

Ronnie forced a startled "humpfh!" past her gag and squirmed in her bonds.  As Jodi's Stealthtex-gloved hand caressed her sex, the helpless brunette's nostrils flared above her gag, and her full breasts heaved.

"I can't tell if you're wet," Jodi whispered, "not through these gloves."  She slid her fingers under Ronnie's panties, tugging and pulling until the silky fabric nestled between her labia.  The prisoner shivered and closed her eyes.  "No," Jodi purred, her fingers continuing to explore, "still can't tell."  She pulled her hand free, lifted her fingers to her nose, and gave them a delicate sniff.  "Never mind," she whispered, grinning at her captive.  "I can tell."  Ronnie blushed, and gave her bonds a half-hearted, squirming tug.  

"I wish we had time to develop a serious Spy/Hostage relationship," Jodi whispered, "but I have to make my escape."  She nodded towards the closet.  "Off you go."

Still blushing, Ronnie started hopping to the closet.  Unfortunately, Jodi's had left her panties bunched and cleaving her sex.  As she hopped, she found the "wedgie" to be mildly irritating, albeit somewhat entertaining.

Jodi eased ahead of Ronnie (pausing a few seconds to watch the captive's breasts bobble and bounce as she hopped), then continued to the closet.  She opened the door, reached inside, and flipped on the overhead light.  The contents included some old software manuals and a few cleaning supplies, all neatly arranged on steel shelves.  Nothing looked dangerous, or, more importantly, of any use to tape-bound captives attempting escape.

"Everybody in!" Jodi commanded, with a cheerful smile.  In short order, the prisoners had hopped and shuffled through the door and squirmed around to face the lab.  It was a tight fit for all three.  They watched (Jenny and Ronnie still amused, Charlie very much not amused) as Jodi pulled a long strip free from the roll, thumbed off the closet light, and plastered the tape over the switch.  Three more strips followed, and the switch was now tightly covered.  There was no way a damsel with taped or rubber-gloved and cable-tie bound hands was going to be able to flip it on, especially with her arms pinned to her torso.

Jenny and Ronnie whined through their gags in good-natured complaint.  Charlie just continued to glare.

"Well," Jodi said brightly, "it's been a pleasure industrially espionaging your workplace.  Let's do it again real soon."  She closed the door, savored the barely audible, distressed mewing sounds emanating from within, then turned her attention to the door itself.

There was no lock, but a fire extinguisher cabinet was recessed into the wall about three feet to the right.  Jodi opened the cabinet, eased the extinguisher off its bracket, and set it on the floor.  She took a turn of tape around the bracket, stretched it to the closet door, took a turn around the doorknob, then back to the bracket.  Five more turns of tape followed, then she restored the extinguisher to its bracket, and closed the cover.  Its latch couldn't engage, but a final strip of tape kept it closed.

"That should do it," Jodi mumbled under her breath, watching as the tape bands fused together and contracted.  She lightly rapped on the closet door with her knuckles.  "Hello in there!" she called, pitching her voice to carry through the closed portal.  "Just wanted to let you know that I'm leaving now.  If someone doesn't find you guys by close of business, I'll release you myself... or maybe tomorrow... if I'm not busy."

She put her ear to the door, listened, and smiled.  Her soon-to-be-abandoned hostages were making the expected well-muffled, very unhappy noises.  "Sometimes it's a lot of fun being an evil villainess," she whispered, then her eyes focused on the wall clock above the main door.  "Oh shit!" she gasped.  "I'm gonna be late for my class!"

Jodi spun on her heel and sprinted from the lab, pausing only to turn out the main lab's overhead lights and set the door control pad to "privacy mode".

12:47 PM
TESSERACT HEALTH CLUB
TESSERACT HEADQUARTERS CAMPUS

---

Elke Weber was at her desk, scrolling through class schedules and trying to find the motivation to tackle the quarterly budget estimates.  "It's like this every time they appoint a new Headquarters Comptroller," she complained, to no one in particular.  "It takes them six months to learn to trust Eve's financial simulations, and in the meantime, we have to answer stupid requests for stupid financial guesstimates."

Just them Randi Bodin, one of her aerobics instructors, stuck her blonde head in the door, a broad grin on her pretty face.  "You gotta come see this," she said, and ducked away.

"What?" Elke asked.  "What??"  Too late.  Elke sighed, password-locked her keyboard, and left her office.  There was a small crowd of Health Club staff and patrons clustered around the door to one of the general purpose rooms.  She joined the back row, and was easily tall enough to be able to see what was happening.

What was happening was the scheduled Advanced Step Aerobics noon class.  No surprise there.  However, the leader of the class, Jodi, was dressed head-to-toe in a shiny, body-hugging, black catsuit!  The class was at the peak of the routine, executing rapid and demanding dance-like lunges, points, and kicks in perfect unison, all in rhythm to booming music, which at the moment was a dance remix of Secret Agent Man.

"Look at her go!" one of the crowd muttered in admiration.

"Is that latex?" another asked.  "She has to be burning up!"

Several watchers turned to Elke with curious faces.  "Don't ask me," the statuesque blonde answered.  She watched for several more seconds, then sighed, and returned to her office.

She sat down at her desk and tapped her password, followed by one of the function keys.  The office door slid closed and the "privacy" sign illuminated.  She tapped another function key, made a selection from a menu, and a hi-resolution image of Jodi and her class appeared on the far wall.  Next, she spoke aloud.  "Eve?"

The voice of Eve-Prime answered from the workstation's compact speakers.  "Yes, Elke?"

"What's the Shrimp up to this time?"

"I assume you want more than a critical commentary of the step routine you're already watching?"

"Yes," Elke sighed.  "Why is she leading one of my classes in rubber or latex or whatever it is she's squeezed herself into?"

"Yes, your sister's dressing habits are slightly more eccentric than most of your staff, but her current costume is, shall we say, a statistical outlier."

"Jodi's a statistical outlier," Elke grumbled.  "Is she okay?  Is she going to overheat and cook herself?"

"Her vital signs are within normal parameters; however..."

"Yes?"

"I am having difficulty calibrating my sensors," Eve continued.  "The material of her costume is... unusual.  Standby."

Several seconds passed.  Elke frowned.  For Eve, several seconds meant a lot of computing.

"The material is 'Stealthtex'," Eve said finally, "an experimental synthetic fabric under development for TESSERACT Security."

Elke nodded, then frowned in concentration, watching the gyrating figures on the screen.  "Who, exactly, in TESSERACT Security?"
 
"Katherine," Eve answered.  "The fabric has useful properties for covert operations."

Elke sighed.  The "intuition alarm" in the back of her consciousness was ringing.  "Eve," she said, "Harem Keeper would like to know what's going on."

"I thought you'd never ask!" Eve responded quickly.  "Do you have any idea how frustrating it is to have a juicy secret you can't share?"

Elke smiled.  "A common human affliction."

"Jodi was recruited for a security drill by Eve-L," Eve continued, speaking rapidly, "and she has Charlie and Jenny Lovell and Ronnie Allbriton bound and gagged in Charlie's lab and the drill is a covert penetration of a secure R&D space and—"

"Whoa, whoa!" Elke interrupted.  "Take a breath now and then, Eve," she laughed.  "I don't think I've ever seen you this enthusiastic about anything."

"Eve-L scheduled the drill on her own initiative!" Eve-Prime explained.

"So you're in 'proud momma' mode," Elke observed.  "That's so sweet."

"Thank you," Eve said quietly.

"I'm confused about the suit," Elke said, staring at the screen.

"Me too," Eve said.  "The drill is still running in background mode, but seems to have reached its tactical conclusion.  Perhaps the suit was intended to aid Jodi's penetration of the campus surveillance zone.  I have no idea why Jodi is still wearing it.  We'll learn more when Eve-L files her after-action report."

Elke nodded, then smiled.  "Bound and gagged in the closet, huh?"

"I'll have video available, after the drill terminates," Eve added (an unmistakable hint of amusement in her disembodied voice).

Elke watched her sister lead the class into the cool-down part of the routine.  The Shrimp's face was flushed and shining, of course, but she wasn't in anything even approaching physiological distress.  "That stuff must really breath," Elke mused aloud, then tapped out the shutdown sequence on her keyboard.  "Eve, sorry to impose, but would you clear my schedule for the rest of the day?"  She stood and walked towards the door.  "Oh, and clear Charlie, Ms. Lovell, and Ms. Allbriton's schedules as well, please."

"My pleasure," Eve intoned.

Elke released the privacy lock and opened the office door.  "Mine too," she purred, and was gone.

Elke took her time.

First of all, she had a staff to brief, to ensure the Health Club would continue to operate smoothly while she attended her "unexpected meeting".  Also, she'd skipped lunch, so she stopped at one of the campus cafés to purchase a small mixed salad.  After all, there was no rush.  If Eve was correct (and she always was), Jenny, Ronnie, and her precious Bug weren't going anywhere.  Besides, some situations, especially unexpected situations, were worth savoring.

Finally, Elke found herself at the entrance to Charlie's lab.  She tapped her Inner Circle signet ring to the security pad, the privacy sign winked out, the door opened, and the overhead lights in the main lab flickered to life.  "The closet you said?" Elke whispered.

"Straight ahead," Eve whispered back, via the tiny speakers in Elke's ear posts.

"The one with the improvised dermafoam lock?"

"The only closet in the main lab," Eve noted.

"Oh, that closet."

Elke entered the lab, treading silently in her cross-trainer sneakers.  She set her salad down on Charlie's desk, eased open one of the desk drawers, and withdrew a "buzz-knife"—a specialized tool with a vibrating blade.  It was specifically designed to slice dermafoam tape without damaging any underlying soft substrate (like clothing, or a damsel's skin).  She tip-toed to the closet, carefully placed one ear against the door... and heard nothing.

Elke thumbed on the buzz-knife and sliced the tape bands of the makeshift lock with one deft stroke.  The dermafoam parted like the proverbial butter.  She took a deep breath, opened the door, and three helpless, tape-gagged, and tape-bound beauties were revealed.  All three began squirming in place, squinting and blinking in the sudden light.

Jenny was literally hopping with enthusiasm, mewing through her gag, her eyes sparkling, enjoying her rescue as thoroughly as she had her capture and her dark, cramped, shared incarceration with her fellow captives.

Ronnie was excited as well, but in a different way.  Elke recognized arousal in her flushed features and heaving bosom.  There was also the hint of a musky perfume wafting from the closet.  It wasn't Charlie's natural fragrance, and she suspected it wasn't coming from perky little Jenny.

Charlie was glad to see her, of course, but Elke could tell her precious little Bug was very much not into the game; not like her fellow captives, that was for sure.  Elke grinned.  She'd seen this attitude before, and knew just how to handle the situation (and Charlie).

"Well, well, well," Elke purred.  "What have we here?"  Ronnie and Jenny mewed gagged greetings and hopped from the closet.  Charlie locked eyes with her rescuer, then rolled her eyes, sighed, and hopped from the closet as well.

Elke inspected the prisoners' bonds, noting the abundant tape binding all three and Jenny's rubber gloves and cable-tie bound fingers, thumbs, and wrists.  She stepped behind Ronnie and carefully used the buzz-knife to slice the fused bands of her dermafoam gag.  "Hold still," she whispered, and peeled the tape from Ronnie's face.  The silver strip tugged and distorted her lips as it surrendered its adhesive grip.  Elke pulled the rubber ball from the captive's mouth, and tossed it into a nearby lab sink.  It bounced a few times, but remained.

Ronnie licked her lips.  "Thank you," she whispered.

"You're welcome," Elke responded, and set to work on Ronnie's mummified arms.  "I take it my little sister, the notorious industrial spy, is responsible for this situation?"

"You got it," Ronnie grinned, and extricated her arms from their sticky former sheath.  She peeled the remaining bands from her torso, being careful not to damage the sheer ruffles of her dress.  Meanwhile, Elke knelt and freed her knees, ankles, and insteps.  "No harm done," Ronnie said, rolling her shoulders and stretching her arms.   "Oh, that feels good."

Elke's nostrils flared.  Ronnie was definitely the source of the musk lingering in the air.  This girl's a regular  pheromone factory, she mused.  Still on her knees, Elke shuffled over to Jenny, slit the tape binding Jenny's knees, ankles, and insteps, peeled the bands free, and discarded them in a convenient wastebasket.

She then stood, and handed the buzz-knife to Ronnie.  "I don't think this thing will cut cable-ties," she said, indicating Jenny's wrist bonds.  "So, why don't you take Jenny back to your office.  I assume you have some scissors or something suitable for that purpose?"

Ronnie blinked in surprise.  She then glanced at Charlie, and her lips curled in a knowing smile.  "Ignoring the obvious—that there are probably a dozen sharp tools right here in this lab—how am I supposed to escort Ms. Lovell to the other side of the campus in her current condition, without causing a scandal?"

Jenny was following the exchange with perky enthusiasm, rather than the alarm one might reasonably expect.  Charlie was simply watching, resigned to her fate.

"Eve," Elke said, lifting her voice, "would you please provide Ronnie and Jenny with a direct and discrete route to the Entertainment Department, through the maintenance corridors?"

"Of course," Eve answered from the overhead speakers.  "There is an access panel in the hallway.  I'll make sure there are no onlookers before opening the door."

"Thank you, Eve," Elke said, smiling broadly.  "You've been in the 'maintenance' areas before, I know," she told Ronnie.

The brunette historian blushed, nodded, then turned to Jenny.  "Have you?"

Jenny shook her head and forced a negative sound past her gag.

"But you know the 'secret passages' exist, right?" Ronnie inquired.

Jenny nodded.  Her eyes were even more wide and excited.

"You want me to cut the rest of your tape bonds now," Ronnie purred, "or would you rather we escape immediately, before Clandestine Jodi returns and recaptures us?"

Her eyes twinkling, Jenny nodded, started towards the door, then clicked back on her cherry red heels, her attention on her still bound and gagged boss.

Charlie's gaze darted from Jenny, to Elke, to Ronnie, then back to Jenny.  She sighed, and nodded towards the door.

"Okay then," Elke purred.  "Off you go.  And don't worry about this one," Elke added, her eyes on Charlie, "I'll take care of her."

"I'm sure you will," Ronnie said, put her arm over Jenny's shoulders, and led her towards the door.

"For taking part in the drill," Elke called after them, "you each get a free dinner for two at the restaurant of your choice.  Just bring me the receipt so I can bill Security."

"Thank you!" Ronnie responded, and Jenny mewed what was probably her thanks as well.

"And take the rest of the day off!" Elke added.

Ronnie waved her free hand, the door opened, she ushered her "fellow escapee" out into the hallway, and the door closed behind them.

Charlie turned from the door to glare at Elke.  She tugged and pulled on her bonds (being careful not to lose her balance and fall), but it was hopeless.  She wasn't going to escape from dermafoam tape, especially not when it had been applied by Jodi Weber.

Elke, smiling in an infuriatingly gloating manner, sauntered to Charlie's desk.  She peeled the lid from her salad, and began munching the crisp contents with her fingers.  Her eyes remained on the remaining "hostage".

"I won't try sitting in your cute little chair," the smug blonde announced.  "I'd probably break it.  And don't worry about Jenny.  Ronnie has her Fiona, and I don't think she's gonna start a harem... not just yet, anyway."  She strolled to a nearby lab bench, hopped up, and sat on its smooth, black surface.  "Why don't you hop on over here?" she suggested, still smiling.

Charlie continued to glare, and Elke continued to eat.

"I love this vinaigrette," Elke said, giving a slice of tomato a delicate lick, then popping it in her mouth.  She chewed and swallowed.  "They don't go overboard with the dressing, like most places."  She then licked her fingers, one-by-one, her eyes locked with Charlie the entire time.  "C'mon," she chided.  "Over here.  Or do you want me to chase you?  That'd be fun too... although not much of a challenge."

Charlie glowered for several more seconds (as Elke continued to eat, and smile her gloating smile), then sighed, and began hopping towards her "rescuer".

Elke watched her progress, savoring the way the diminutive scientist's breasts and short raven locks bobbed and shook as she hopped.  Her impossibly blue, incredibly attractive eyes continued to radiate hostility (but Elke wasn't fooled).

Charlie stopped a couple of feet in front of Elke, mumbled what was probably a demand to be released through her gag, then yelped in alarm when Elke spread and extended her spandex-clad legs, hooked her sneakers behind Charlie's waist and bound arms, and pulled her close.  The captive squirmed and complained, but Elke's strong, well-muscled legs and thighs held her against the table and trapped in a gentle, but inescapable, scissor-lock.

Charlie continued to glare and mew angry complaints.  Elke continued to gloat and eat.

"Eve," Elke said, munching and swallowing the last of the salad, "I forgot to lock the door.  Would you take care of that for me, please?"

"Your wish is my command, Harem Keeper," Eve intoned.  "The door is locked.  Would you like anything else?  Champagne?  Strawberries, brown sugar, and whipped cream?  A little mood music?"

Elke laughed, leaned forward, and hauled Charlie onto her lap.  Lifting the small, helpless package was no challenge for the grinning amazon, despite Charlie's wiggling resistance.  "Thank you, Eve," she purred, "but the mood is just fine."  She held Charlie close with her left arm, reached under the squirming captive's skirt, and pulled her panties down her white thighs until stopped by the silver bands binding the pixie's knees.

Charlie continued to struggle (although she was finding it increasingly difficult to maintain her angry façade).

Elke leaned close, kissed Charlie's gagged lips, then nuzzled her ear.  "Poor Charlotte," she whispered.  "Innocently going about her scientific puttering..."  Her right hand slid back under Charlie's skirt and between her thighs.  "...and in barges an industrial spy, who ties her up, and gags her so she can't call for help..."  Her fingers teased and parted Charlie's labia.  The helpless pixie shuddered in Elke's arms.  "And now, here you are in the power of her accomplice."

She caressed the sensitive folds of her precious Bug's most intimate person, and teased the erect nub of her clitoris; but Charlie's bound legs were seriously handicapping her efforts.  "Note to self," Elke whispered.  "Next time free the knees before commencing forced entry."

That was all it took.  Charlie convulsed in helpless mirth, giggling through her gag, and quivering and squirming in Elke's arms.  All trace of her "righteous outrage" had vanished.

Charlie's gagged laughter subsided, and captor and captive gazed into each other's eyes.  Elke continued her caressing massage, and Charlie continued shivering and shuddering.

Finally, Elke sighed, and withdrew her hand (causing her "victim" to whine in complaint).  She picked Charlie up in her arms, cradling her like a baby (and with as little effort), then hopped off the table.

"Let's continue this someplace else," she suggested, "someplace with a nice soft bed and some cuffs and straps, so I can peel you out of all this tape, and all these pesky clothes, and we can do this right."

Charlie smiled above her gag, and rested the side of her face against Elke's warm, firm breast.

Elke carried her captive burden to an alcove behind Charlie's desk.  Without prompting, one of the walls slid silently open, allowing the happy couple to enter the Biosphere.

"Remind me to send Shrimp a nice 'thank you card'," Elke purred, causing Charlie to start giggling again.  "Maybe some flowers... or a potted plant..."  Charlie continued giggling.  "I know, a fruit basket!"

The secret door slid closed behind the happy pair, and the lights in the deserted lab went dark.