"I haven't yet said 'thank you!'"

Grady looked over at where Shawna lay curled up on the floor pillows, and asked what she was talking about.

"For rescuing me...from the river.  Thank you," said Shawna softly.

Grady grunted and returned to what he was doing, but Shawna could see that he wasn't ignoring her.

After being returned to his home by Vicky, Shawna and Grady had spent the last hour in comfortable silence.  Comfortable because Grady had untied the leather cord that bound her, leaving her free to wander about the small apartment.

To her delight, she had found a shelf with a few books, Dickens classics that had seen better days but were still readable.  Shawna liked to read, but had rarely had the chance while with Dirk.  She asked Grady if he minded her looking through one, and he told her to go ahead.  So in the lamplight, she immersed herself in the story of Oliver Twist.

Grady it turned out, was a whittler.  Sitting in the room's only chair, he used a small knife on a rather large square piece of wood.  It must have been a new project, Shawna thought, because he was starting fresh with it.

While she read, she watched Grady.  She admired the way his muscles moved, the intense look in his eyes as he worked, and the way his longish hair kept falling in his face.

He was a handsome man, but so consumed.

Shawna thought about his wife, about how she must have been a powerful woman to hold this man's heart.

He must have loved her very much to be still torturing himself.

Every so often she would pick up a glass of water she had set aside, taking a sip to quench the thirst water could not quench.  She tried imagining it was whisky, or vodka, or one of a hundred different drinks.  But it was always water, nothing more.

She began to struggle with Dickens' prose.

Looking again at Grady, she thought it was time to break the silence.

"I guess I must seem pretty stupid to you," she said after her thanks fell flat.

"Yes," Grady answered, not looking at her.

"Getting involved in drugs and everything," Shawna continued.

Grady said nothing.

"Do you want to know how I got started; why I took drugs and drank so much?"

"No, not really," Grady said.

Shawna felt a surge of anger.  Here she was trying to reach out to this man, and he was just shutting her out.

"Well, why don't we talk about you then," she said, her voice trying not to show her sudden anger.  "I was told about your wife.  I'm sorry for what happened."

Grady glanced at her.  "Someone has a big mouth.  Vicky Miller I'd bet."

"Yes, she told me a little.  I can't imagine what it would be like to lose someone you cared for suddenly like that."

"No," Grady said, head down close to the wood he was working, "you can't."

"How long were you married?" Shawna asked hesitantly.

Grady dropped his piece of wood on the floor.  "Look, just shut up will you!" he said loudly.  "I don't want to talk!"

"I think that talking about it would be good for you!" Shawna answered just as loudly.

Grady got out of his chair and headed for the water jug.  "I don't.  It's a closed subject.  Now shut up before I gag you!"

"What?" said Shawna, sitting up.

"Gag you.  You know, stick something in your mouth so you can't talk?"

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Wouldn't I?  It's within my rights!  You agreed to stay here under our rules, and as Head of my house, if I choose to gag you, I can do it if I want."

"Oh, another of your stupid rules!" Shawna said in disgust.

Grady had been pouring himself a glass of water, but he slammed the earthenware jug down, almost breaking it.  "If you don't like it, you can always leave, you know.  Go back to town where you belong!"

"Maybe I should!  At least there, I'll be treated like a human being, not some...slave you can keep on tying up whenever you choose!"  Shawna yelled, getting to her feet.

"Well I'm not stopping you, woman!  I didn't want you here in the first place!" Grady yelled back.

"Fuck you!"  Shawna yelled.

Grady's own anger flared.  He picked up the jug and tossed its contents toward Shawna.  The water hit her in the face and chest, and made her step back.

"You fucking asshole!" she screamed.  "I don't have to take this shit any longer!  I don't give a damn about getting dry anymore!  I'm leaving!"

Grady pointed.  "The door's right there!"

Shawna moved to the door, wiping water off the front of her leather dress, and left the apartment.  She padded barefoot a few doors along the hallway before stopping.

She was pissed but her anger was quickly being overcome with worry.  In her haste, she had forgotten that her reception in town would not probably be a good one; jail was still the last thing she wanted.  Also, all she had was the dress she wore; no shoes or anything to protect her from the woods if she WAS to leave the Compound.

The last time she had tried it, she was in a withdrawal-induced madness.  Now she felt more in control, and didn't relish going back outside in the dark.

Shawna, her anger now gone, collapsed and sat down on the floor.  She began to cry as her tenuous emotional balance tried to compensate for the rush of anger she had felt.

She felt like she had no choices; that to escape prison, she had found another prison to be in.  Yes, she had agreed to their rules, but she had never expected what she had been through already.

It was too much for the young woman.

"Hey, are you okay?" said a feminine voice.

Shawna looked up.  It was Rhianna and Matthew.

"I...um..." Shawna tried to say.

Rhianna was concerned, and she sighed.  "What happened?"

Shawna looked from her to Matthew and back again.  "We just..." she shrugged her shoulders.

"He didn't try to touch you did he?"  Matthew asked, a scowl on his face.

"No...it was nothing like that.  We just...had an argument.  A silly argument.  It was nothing really."

"It looks like more than nothing," Rhianna said, holding out a hand for Shawna to take.

Shawna took the hand and stood up.  She noticed that Rhianna looked rather fetching in her thin cloth halter and leather mini skirt, while Matthew looked very handsome in his dark brown leather pants and matching vest.  The couple looked like they were out doing the town!

Then Shawna noticed Rhianna's ankles.  They were connected with a length of cord that must have limited her stride a little.  It was unusual enough to distract Shawna from her problems.

Rhianna saw what Shawna was looking at, and blushed slightly.

It was one of Matthew's games, a little bondage to please him although Rhianna didn't mind so much.  It was usually very worth it later in bed.

Rhianna DID wonder why the front of Shawna's dress was so wet, and thought it must have been some argument.  She still had her suspicions about the woman, though.

"Let's get you home," Rhianna said with a smile.

Shawna looked up, worried once more.  How could she go back after what had happened?

But Rhianna took her arm, and with Matthew walking behind her, she led the frightened girl back to Grady's.  Rhianna knocked on the door, and after a moment, Grady answered.  He had by this time stripped down to his loincloth, and both women couldn't help glancing down at his physique.  He was quite a picture!

Grady was surprised to see them, especially Shawna, it seemed to Rhianna.

"We found her down the hall," Rhianna said with a smile.

Grady said nothing; he just stood there.

"It's after curfew," Matthew said, "she can't be out here by herself."

Grady nodded and stood back.

With her head low, Shawna scooted into the apartment.

As Grady began closing the door, Rhianna held out a hand.  "Are you okay, Grady?" she asked him.

"Yeah.  Thanks," he said.

"Well, I was wondering-I could use some help tomorrow with my class.  If Shawna was available, that would be great!"

Grady glanced inside for a second before looking back at her.  "She'll be here all day except for when the Doc sees her and when she's in the stocks.  Come get her when you need her."

"Thank you."  Rhianna gave him a smile but Grady didn't smile back.

Matthew said to Grady, "Let's go for a beer sometime!"

Grady gave a small nod and shut his door.

Matthew and Rhianna resumed their walk, Rhianna taking slightly shorter strides than she was used to because of her hobble.

"Do you think it's wise, those two being alone together?" Rhianna asked her husband.

"It's what the elders want.  They have to have a good reason," Matthew replied.

"I hope so.  It didn't look to me like they were getting along.  Poor Shawna looked terrified!"

"Oh, so it's 'Poor Shawna' now, is it?  Yesterday you were telling me that she was the devil incarnate."

Rhianna punched her husband in the arm.  "Smart ass.  I do think she's up to something; but this place must be confusing to her, and Grady isn't exactly the friend she needs to help her adjust.  This place is weird enough when you HAVE a guide!"

"I don't know...everything seems perfectly normal and right to me!"  Matthew said with a grin.

Rhianna laughed, knowing well the signs for one of their frequent conversations on women's rights here at the Compound.  "Yes, Master.  Things are as they should be," she joked.

"Damn straight!"  Matthew said seriously.

The couple arrived at their destination and Matthew knocked.

The door was opened by a swarthy looking gentleman who gave them a big grin.

"You made it!" he said, then he looked back into his apartment.  "Estelle!  Get out the box of ropes.  Matthew and Rhianna are here!"

Rhianna sighed and followed her husband inside, ready for her role as a living model for her husband's popular night course of "Advanced Rope Bondage."

---***---

Grady stood and stared at Shawna.  "You want to try again?  I can escort you to the gates if you want!"

"No, I'll stay.  I can't...I'd rather stay if you don't mind."  Shawna felt miserable.

"Then enough bullshit.  I'm responsible for you, which makes you responsible TO ME!  I'm in charge, that's the way we live her, and it's a pretty damn good system if you let it do its thing."  He sighed, his expression softening.  "Look.  I know you've had it rough since you got here, and the Doc told me that physically you're going to be weak for a while until you recover.  But what you're experiencing isn't how life really is for the women here.  We don't keep them in bondage all the time, tied up at our whim.  For the most part, the marriages here are just like marriages in your world, full of give and take, with each partner contributing to the whole.  I know we're not married but it's the same thing in many ways.

"Once you're done with your discipline, then you'll be free to go about the place as you choose, within the rules, that is.  You might even come to like it here."

Shawna was a little surprised at the speech.  It was more than he had ever said to her before.  "Would you like it if I liked it here?" she asked before she could stop herself.

Grady blinked, then turned away.  "You'd better get undressed, get that wet dress off.  I was about to turn out the lights for bed."

Shawna felt about to bristle at the order to undress again, but then realized that what he said made sense.  She couldn't sleep in this dress; being wet, it was uncomfortable.  So she pulled at some lacing and slipped it off, now clad only in her loincloth.  Nervous, she held an arm across her breasts and watched as Grady began turning off the oil lamps.

"Do you want me to take my loincloth off too?" she asked.

"Whatever is more comfortable for you to sleep in," Grady answered.  He worked his way around the apartment until the light in the bed nook was the only one burning.  He pulled his loincloth off and slipped under the covers of his big bed.

Shawna stood, confused.  Was she supposed to join him?  They had both been told 'no sex', but what about sleeping?

Grady noticed her dilemma.  "You sleep over there, on the pillows like last night."

Shawna frowned.  The pillows were okay, but she would have preferred the bed.

"Is there another blanket?" she asked.

Grady pointed at a shelf, and Shawna retrieved the coveted blanket, holding it in front of her.

"Turn out the last light," ordered Grady.

She did so, plunging the room into darkness until her eyes adjusted to the moonlight coming in through the sky light.

She padded over to the pillows and lay down.

"Thank you." she said quietly.

"For what?" Grady said from the bed.

"For not tying me up this time."

"Well, I figure you need the sleep more than you need the discipline."

Shawna smiled, aware that in his own way, Grady had admitted that he cared for her well being.  Life with him might not be that bad after all!

---***---

Shawna's light sleep was disturbed by a sound.  It was crying.  Listening, Shawna realized that once again Grady was crying, mourning the loss of his wife once more.  She listened as long as she could bear it, tears forming in her own eyes in sympathy, before throwing back her blanket and getting up.

She padded silently to the bed, and saw Grady laying on his side, half covered by the blanket, apparently asleep as he cried.

Shawna carefully climbed onto the bed and lay next to him.  Just as he had done for her by the riverside, she now maneuvered herself spoon fashion behind him.  She lay an arm across his chest, pushing herself against his bare back.  Her naked chest could feel the hairs against her smooth skin, and he felt quite warm.

She was quite comfortable and had to warn herself not to fall asleep.  Instead, she began to whisper quietly, saying comforting things, while letting her physical presence slowly work its way into his sleeping mind.

Presently his crying ceased, and Grady seemed to relax some more, his breathing slowing and deepening.  Shawna stayed with him a little while longer, and then carefully extricated herself.

As she settled back onto her pillows, she got a shock.

"Thank you," she heard him say.

"You're welcome," Shawna replied after a moment.

Nothing more was said until morning.

---***---

Visible through the skylight, the night sky was just beginning to lighten when Matthew Anderson woke up.  Without opening his eyes, he reached over to his wife's side of the bed for a little early morning cuddling and found it empty.  Blinking the sleep away, he sat up, and saw Rhianna out in the middle of the apartment doing her stretches.

Matthew LOVED to watch her stretch; a more perfect start to the day he could not imagine.  Rhianna had been adamant about staying in shape when she came back with him to live.  Back in New York, she jogged almost every day, and took a number of keep fit classes covering everything from aerobics to weight training to Judo Kick Boxing.

Now that she lived here, she tried not to let any of those skills deteriorate, especially since they were the foundation of her main usefulness to the Compound.

When she first arrived, there was some debate as to what she could do, as everybody contributed in some way.  But it was Estelle, funnily enough, who found a place for Rhianna to work.  Estelle taught history at the Compound school, and she pointed out that while all the academic portions of school life were covered, there was very little physical training for the students.  Of course, you couldn't help BUT get fit, living on the side of a mountain; but there was no real structured training for the children or for anyone really.  The benefits of instilling physical discipline among the young had an appeal to the parents of the community.

So Rhianna became in essence the school's Gym teacher; and she did her best to tone up the bodies of her charges using games and exercises.

It turned out to be a success.  Not only was stamina and strength increased amongst the children, but also a sense of team play and cooperation, due to the team games Rhianna taught.  Soon adults were watching her lessons, and Rhianna began teaching adult classes.  There was even talk of a small softball league starting next year if enough flat land could be found to build a diamond.

So Rhianna worked to stay fit, and part of that self imposed fitness program was her morning stretches, which she did every morning she wasn't otherwise tied up with something.

Sometimes, Matthew would untie her just to see her do them.

This particular morning, Matthew sighed because he had missed most of them, but he still caught what he liked to call the finale.

Rhianna, nude as she usually was at home, was just starting to do the splits.  Facing to her right, she lowered herself down; her right leg out straight in front of her, her left leg out straight behind her.  It was a slow, sensuous movement, and as she bottomed out, Matthew could have sworn her pussy touched the wood floor.

Rhianna, her arms raised over her head, swiveled her body slowly around until it faced the other way, and she bent forward to touch her left foot.

Matthew could see her muscles quivering, well defined under her golden skin.  He could tell it was a strain, keeping her legs so wide apart, but he grinned thinking about how useful that skill had been to HIM from time to time.

As Rhianna turned once again to touch her right foot, Matthew thought how proud he was of her.  There were times he had worried about her fitting in, that she might stagnate without the challenges the FBI could give her in the outside world.  But even though she fought the bit from time to time, Rhianna had become a part of the community with no regrets.

He was happy, and he knew for a fact that she was as well.

He continued to watch as Rhianna touched each foot ten times, before turning to a position mid way between her feet and bending forward till her nipples touched the floor.  She held this position for a few moments, her back to Matthew so he could see her charms quite clearly, and then dropped her hands to the floor.

She swept her legs together and rolled over onto her back, a smile on her face.

"Like the show?" she asked with a grin.

"Always!"  Matthew chuckled.

"I'll bet," Rhianna replied.  She stood up slowly and patted her stomach.  "I think I'm putting on weight.  I need to run more."

"You look perfect to me!" Matthew said honestly.

"Buster, I'd look good to you with thirty extra pounds, as long as I was naked and had a six pack of beer with me!"

"Well..." replied Matthew, nodding slowly in agreement.

"Asshole!" laughed Rhianna, throwing a handy floor pillow at him.

Matt caught the pillow and tossed it back at her, calling her over to him.  "I want to feel this flab of yours!" he said to her.

She came over and crawled back onto the bed, full of feline grace now that she had stretched out.  Matthew reached for her stomach and felt her firm abdominal muscles.

"Feels good here!" he said, and he began moving his hands about, testing every square inch of her body.

Rhianna began to wriggle, his touch tickling her, and soon they were both laughing on the bed as they tried to out-tickle each other.  Of course, tickling led to other fun bedtime activities, and the sky above them was considerably brighter by the time they slowed down enough for Matthew to talk once more.

"How come you're up so early?" he asked.  They hadn't exactly had an early night, what with the rope bondage lesson Matthew had given Estelle and her husband the night before.

"Oh shit!" Rhianna exclaimed, freeing herself of both lover and bedclothes.  "I'm supposed to help out with breakfast this morning.  Now I'm late!  Elizabeth will kill me!"

"Tell her it's my fault," Matthew said, watching in amusement as his wife quickly searched for a loincloth to put on.  Rhianna rarely went completely nude if she could help it, outside their apartment.  Her last case for the FBI had put her in a position where the hair of her pubis had been permanently removed, leaving her sex completely bare.

No one else at the Compound did this, so Rhianna was always self-conscious about it.

Not long after she arrived though, some of the teenage girls, led by Lilly, who adored Rhianna, copied her style by shaving themselves bare as well.  This did not go down well with parents or community, and the girls were instructed to stay covered up until their hair grew back.  The community understood that there was nothing Rhianna could do about her condition, and respected her discretion about it, but these were not a smooth skin kind of people.

Matthew liked it, but then he had lived most of his adult life away from the Compound, giving him what he thought of as a continental taste.

So Rhianna found a loincloth and tied it up with the waist rope she removed at night.  "Too damn right I'm going to blame you!" she said, heading for the door.

"One sniff, one look, and they'll believe you," Matthew answered, making a show of smelling his own hand, which was well covered in her juices.

Rhianna stopped, realizing that she must look exactly like she felt, freshly fucked, and she knew she would have to make a quick stop at the bathhouse before going to the kitchen, making her even later.

She stuck her tongue out at her husband and bolted out the door while Matthew settled back for another snooze.

---***---

Things weren't quite as upbeat at Grady's slightly later that morning.  Shawna was woken by heavy footsteps, and she opened her eyes to see Grady, still nude, heading out the door.

A few minutes later he came back, and Shawna figured he must have gone down the hall to the bathroom, something she felt she had better do soon as well.  As Grady sat back down on the bed, Shawna got up from the pillows.  She was still in her loincloth, not willing to take it off.

"Morning," she said with a smile.  She was hoping that the connection she and Grady had made last night was still there.

Grady nodded and wiped his face.  It looked like he had taken the time to dunk his head in some water, for his hair was all wet.  He didn't look right to Shawna, though.

"You okay?" she asked him, coming closer.

"Yeah, I'm okay, just a case of the trots.  Must have been something I ate."

"Okay," Shawna replied.  "Can I go use the bathroom?  Or do you have to tie me up first?"

Grady looked up at her and then waved at the door.  "Go, but hurry back!"

Shawna was thrilled.  "Thanks!"

She made quick use of the bathroom facilities, wishing all the time that she could take a shower, and made it back to the apartment without too many people seeing her.  It felt even funnier, going out in just the loincloth with her hands free.  Before, she couldn't cover up if she wanted to, and now that she could, she thought people would look at her funny if she did!

When she got back, she saw that Grady was gone again, and she figured he must have had another attack of stomach trouble.

Shawna wondered how they kept their food fresh here, and if this was something common to all the community.

When Grady came back, he saw Shawna standing in the middle of the room, holding her dress to herself.  She looked rather depressed, and even he could see that the dress needed cleaning.  She looked up at him, and he tried to pull himself together.  He wasn't feeling as good as he said he was, but didn't want to show that weakness to her.

"Do I have to wear this again?" Shawna asked him, "I could use a change of clothes."

Grady knew she was hinting at using Cheryl's clothes; he hadn't gotten rid of any of them.  But he wasn't ready to let someone else wear them yet.

"You won't need them today," he said.  "You'll be spending most of your time here while I'm at the stables.  I want this apartment scrubbed from ceiling to floor.  That should take you most of the day."

"Oh," Shawna replied, not looking forward to it.

Grady pulled on a loincloth and a pair of pants, and then picked up a length of leather cord.  "Come on, let's go get some breakfast."

Shawna eyed the cord sadly and turned around, holding her hands behind her.

Resigned once more to eating a meal topless and bound.
 
 

End of Part 9