Madelaine's War

"And for this you got fifteen years...."

I said it quietly, almost in disbelief.

When she spoke next it was edged with derision.

"What chance did I stand? In the dock, my word against that of a member of the establishment. The judge was probably at school with her father."

She pulled away from me and looked me in the eye.

"Look, if you need my help it's a fair guess that it's not my intellect intrigues you. To survive in this place I have had to use my physical attributes to my advantage and I think that it is those skills that are of interest to you. I know what it says about me in my record 'a lesbian, cunning, calculating, a danger to herself and other inmates' .

Well, I have a price. I want to be free of this place...and I want my revenge."

How could I tell a twenty-one year old woman that the price might be her life?

Chapter 3

At this stage I could not tell her what the mission would involve, nor the potential cost, but I arranged to have her freed on licence and sent down to Wanborough Manor, the Special Operations Executive facility just outside Guildford.

Over the next four weeks she would receive a crash course in field craft and be taught enough German to get by.

For my part I tried to come to terms with what had happened. She was sharp enough to know why I had sought her out but had her behaviour simply been a demonstration of her skills or had there been a genuine attraction? Either way she had left an emotional scar.

She had also left me with a dilemma. She wanted revenge and I was not sure how to deliver it. The Viscountess Tremaine was somewhere in line to the throne and her stepdaughter was Evelyn Newsom-Thomas a stage actress of some renown. I had seen her only a few weeks before at the Adelphi and had left convinced that her growing fame owed more to her looks than her acting skills.

I put in a routine request to the SOE "gossip shop" and was almost instantly rewarded. Newsom-Thomas retained a mews cottage off of Kensington Gore and the Viscountess regularly stayed over with her on Thursdays and Fridays. It was believed that she was conducting an affair with a senior member of the defence staff and so she appeared on the "watch list".

A very crude plan began to form. On the following Thursday I collected Madelaine from Wanborough and explained what I intended to do. At first she looked shocked but then she began to laugh.

The lock on the mews cottage door was crude and easy to pick. I ushered Madelaine inside, relocked the door, and then we waited. The Town Hall drawings showed that the cottage had a cellar and, as I hoped, it had been retained as an air raid shelter complete with an iron framed double bed.

Evelyn was first home and suspected nothing as she turned on the light. She immediately recognized Madelaine and was on the point of screaming when she took note of the Welrod silenced pistol that I held pointed at her chest.

"What the hell is this!"

"No questions. Follow her downstairs."

"You must be joking!"

The dull thud of the Welrod was accompanied by the shattering sound of an exploding vase which, a split second before, had stood in the centre of the table immediately to her left.

With fear in her eyes she followed Madelaine with me bringing up the rear. The cellar was well lit with no fewer than three Tilly lamps and I guessed that fuel rationing was not a problem for some.

Madelaine sat down on the bed and I moved beside her with the gun still pointed at Evelyn. I had reckoned that I would only need a single bullet to make my point and she was not to know that the gun was now empty.

"Take off all your clothes."

She looked terrified.

"I can't!"

Madelaine snarled at her.

"Shy all of a sudden? You didn't seem to have any inhibitions when you ripped my clothes off."

"It wasn't my idea."

"I didn't see you going out of your way to stop it."

I could see her mind working. She just needed to cooperate until the Viscountess came home and so she slowly began to remove her clothes. When she stood in just her underwear I waved the gun slowly.

"Everything...I want you naked."

The words jarred and it took an effort of will for her to remove the remainder but, curiously, the actress in her then came to the fore. She stood up straight almost daring us to look.

With her blue eyes and peekaboo hair style she put me in mind of the American film actress Veronika Lake but the neat, mousey, thatch at her crotch gave the lie to her blonde colouring. She was shorter than me, probably around five four, and, whilst trim, she looked well fed by wartime standards.

She had a dancers legs and her breasts were beautifully shaped. The slight chill had brought her neat pink nipples to prominence and raised goosebumps on her forearms.

"Lie down on the bed."

"Not until you tell me what all this is about."

I walked behind her and slapped her sharply on the backside. The shock drove her forward and sent her sprawling onto the counterpane. I pointed the gun between her eyes.

"Don't move"

Taking her cue Madelaine opened her bag and took out a roll of parachute cord from which she proceeded to cut off four short lengths. Realizing what was to come Evelyn tried to move away but another gesture with the gun was enough to quieten her.

She surrendered to the inevitable as Madelaine secured her limbs to the four corners of the bed. Seeing her like that, tightly secured and totally vulnerable, had an unexpected effect and I felt an odd tingle centred on my sex.

I was still trying to come to terms with it when a new voice jolted me back to reality.

"What's going on here?"

Instinct kicked in. I dropped to one knee and held the empty gun in both hands centred on the Viscountess who now stood in the doorway. I peripherally noted that she had removed her shoes, which accounted for her silent entry, but I could not believe that I had been so sloppy.

Fortunately, the speed of my movement, and the immediate menace of the gun, shocked her to stillness but then the natural arrogance of her class reasserted itself.

"I demand to know who you are and what you think you are doing."

If Evelyn was Veronica Lake then the Viscountess was an older version of Gene Tierney. At forty-one she was fifteen years older than her step-daughter but she could have passed for early thirties with ease.

The society photographs that I had reviewed barely did her justice and her beauty had more in common with the movie star than someone suffering the privations of wartime Britain.

I had to give her credit. She looked at me steadily, deliberately ignoring the ignominious plight of her step daughter who now gave warning.

"They're serious. She shot at me upstairs."

The Viscountess cast her eyes down at the gun and then disdainfully back to me.

"The vase? You should know that it was an Imari original."

I knew that I had to retain the initiative and puncture her sang-froid. I turned to Madelaine.

"Let me have the knife."

The knife that I had provided her with to cut the cord was a vicious looking box cutter and I made sure that the Viscountess got a good look at it. I then slipped the blade under the spaghetti strap of her evening gown.

"Stay very still."

I calculated that she might just call my bluff on the gun but the knife held out the prospect of lasting, if less lethal, consequences.

"This isn't necessary. If you want money I'll show you where it is."

I ignored her as I surgically sliced through the second strap and allowed her gown to fall to the floor.

"We are not here for money."

For an instant her previously steady gaze wavered. She too had recognized Madelaine and must have assumed an escape from custody along with a need for funds.

A series of deft flicks of the blade were enough to dispense with her camisole and her pants leaving her with just her stockings. I now wanted to be done and to leave as quickly as possible but Madelaine suddenly went off script.

"Bring her over."

I was about to take issue with her but I bit my tongue. She needed to restore her self esteem with these women and I did not want to tip the delicate balance.

I touched the Viscountess of the shoulder with the haft of the knife and urged her forward. Naked and helpless as she was she still retained her poise and I guiltily took in the smooth lines of her legs and her slightly heavy derriere.

She looked down at her step daughter and tried to reassure her without speaking but we were all taken by surprise as Madelaine began to strip out of the dark, factory workers, overall that I insisted she wore not least because she was totally naked beneath it.

"Do you remember what you made me do...of course you do."

She was leaning over Evelyn, with their faces just inches apart, and I could see the terror in the young woman's eyes.

She allowed a second or two for realization to hit home and then she eased herself onto the bed sliding her knees over Evelyn's pinioned arms. My own experience had been confined to the dark and under the covers and I could never have conceived of something as outrageous as Madelaine now seemed to be proposing.

"Get off me!"

"Just as soon as you bring me off."

Evelyn began to struggle to the extent that her bindings allowed but it was to no avail. Madelaine waited her out and then spoke again.

"Like it not you are going to do it because, if you don't, you won't recognize your step-mother by the time my friend has finished with her."

I had made it clear to her at the outset that there was to be no physical violence. The intention was simply to humiliate them and teach them a lesson but clearly Madelaine wanted more. Fortunately her threat had an immediate effect on the Viscountess. She recoiled from me but I grabbed her by the arm.

She looked from me to her step-daughter and whispered imploringly.

"We can get through this. You just have to do as she says."

Evelyn's face bore a look of disbelief at this seeming betrayal and a tear started from her eye but Madelaine was in no mood to be merciful. She brought her knees closer together, trapping Evelyn's head, and then slid forward to seal her in.

The Viscountess remained still but, nevertheless, I moved behind her. From here I posed a more ominous threat but it also afforded me a clearer view of the proceedings.

Madelaine looked relaxed, her hands resting on her knees, and completely unabashed by our presence. My eyes fell to her breasts and I wondered why she would be envious of mine. Hers were delightfully up tilted with pale pink nipples forming twin crowns. Even as I watched they started to evidence her increasing arousal.

From somewhere beneath her came a despairing scream but she ignored it and said loudly.

"Cut her."

The Viscountess jerked but I was relieved to see that Madelaine was winking at me. The smile on her face broadened and I could only assume that Evelyn was finally doing as she was told.

For a moment or two all was silence but then Evelyn began to struggle again until Madelaine relented a little and allowed her to gasp for air. Her face, now revealed, was very red and smeared with glistening moisture.

When she had made a partial recovery Madelaine knelt up over her just inches from her mouth and I was stunned to see that her sex was completely bare. For a moment she looked like a playful adolescent and I had to remind myself that she was a woman in her twenties.

"Now it's up to you. You either make the effort or I sit on your face again. Which is it to be?"

Evelyn looked appalled but Madelaine's words stirred something deep inside of me. For an instant I felt unsteady on my legs and I had to make a conscious effort to recover myself.

I thought that she was going to refuse but, as she cast an anguished look towards her step-mother, I moved the knife just a fraction. I do not know what came over me. My movement could only be interpreted as a threat and the Viscountess trembled with dread.

"Evelyn..please..."

The fear in her step-mothers voice had the desired effect. She looked up at her nemesis with a final vestige of defiance but then slowly lifted her head.

She visibly shuddered as she made a first, tentative, pass with her tongue but then she seemed to accept her fate and began to lick more positively.

Madelaine accepted her tribute for a minute or two but was determined to demean her captive as much as possible.

"Do it with a little more feeling...we'll make a lesbian of you yet."

More time ticked past and the strain of keeping her head up, and her mouth in place, was slowly taking its toll but Madelaine was enjoying herself too much. She took hold of a pillow and unceremoniously stuffed it beneath Evelyn's head pressing her more tightly to her in the process.

"You're doing well but now I want to feel your tongue inside me."

As she said it she reached down to part her sex with her fingertips. The, wet, livid pink core formed a stark contrast to her ivory skin and it was all I could do to suppress a gasp.

I could not believe that a woman could be so overtly sexual and so completely uninhibited. She defied all my preconceived notions of a female's role but, far from being revolted, I found myself drawn towards her.

Evelyn looked equally shocked but she too had fallen under the spell. As she pushed out her tongue Madelaine descended to meet her and gave a purr of delight as they mated.

My senses suddenly seemed more acute. As Madelaine began to rock, almost imperceptibly, I could hear Evelyn's near silent whimper as she tried to remain engaged and my nose twitched as it caught the scent of arousal thickening the air.

A slight movement drew my eye to the Viscountess. I was astonished to see that her dark nipples were fully engorged and she was struggling to keep her hands at her sides. There was a guilty glint of excitement in her eyes as Madelaine threw back her head and surrendered to her climax with an immodest groan.

She sat back on her haunches as she tried to catch her breath but I was probably breathing as hard as she was. When she had finally gathered herself she rose with an effort and stood beside the bed.

"Give me the knife."

I knew that I should not have done it. Years of training had drilled into me the need to retain control of any given situation but the forbidden excitement she instilled was overpowering.

As I handed it over I was telling myself that I could as easily disarm her but the truth was that I wanted to know what she intended to do.

She studied the blade as it glinted in the light and then looked up at me.

"Get undressed."

She spoke quietly but with the authoritative edge of someone beyond her years. I knew it was insane but I could not help myself. My fingers trembled as I worked the buttons of my overall and let it slip to the floor.

I was wearing utilitarian underwear and, for a second, I saw the slightest hint of contempt in the eyes of the Viscountess but then there was a grudging appreciation as I stripped altogether.

"Come here..."

Her voice was hypnotic, rich with promise, and my legs seemed to move of their own volition.

"Get on the bed...like I did...but round the other way."

Evelyn was about to protest but the touch of the blade against her shoulder instantly quietened her.

I did not have her natural gracefulness and I positioned myself a little more awkwardly. I was now facing the foot of the bed and the aberrant thrill of knowing that my sex was almost resting on Evelyn's face was making me light headed.

I was willing her to say the words, to make Evelyn do it, but she was working to a different script. She smiled at the Viscountess.

"Your turn. Come here and lie on top of her."

She looked totally aghast, and I thought that she might actually flee the room, but Madelaine reinforced her command by running the blunt edge of the knife over Evelyn's stomach.

"Please!!...Just do it!"

Evelyn was blinded by my enclosing thighs, and had no idea what had been done to her as she screamed out her agonized plea, but the warmth of her exploding breath made me acutely aware of the moistness of my sex.

The Viscountess hesitated a moment longer but then slowly approached the bed. As far as she was concerned Madelaine was manifestly unhinged and capable of anything; it was a conclusion with which I would have found it hard to argue.

"I'm sorry."

I was not sure if she was apologizing to her step daughter for the situation they found themselves in or for the fact that she now lay heavily upon her but Evelyn seemed to relax a little now that she had a shield from the immediate threat of the blade.

I could not shake the sense that she was posing us for her personal amusement but I was almost beyond caring. My sex was crying out for relief and I was on the verge of voicing my own demands.

After a few seconds the Viscountess lifted her head a little to make it easier for her step daughter to breathe but, in so doing, she brought herself closer to me. Madelaine chose that moment to lean over and whisper in her ear.

"You know what she wants you to do..."

She shivered in disgust but she knew that there was no choice but to co-operate. Her positioning made it awkward, perhaps even painful, but she bent her neck and I had to bite my lip to hold back a scream of pleasure as I felt the first, clumsy, touch of her tongue.

She recoiled from that initial contact and swallowed, as if she had tasted bitter aloes, but she steeled herself and made a second attempt. This time she licked narrowly, along the edges of my labia, but I was so aroused that my sex parted invitingly.

Again, she wavered, but then she screwed her eyes closed and reapplied herself. It was clear that she had never done this before but, appreciating that, and knowing also that Evelyn was bearing intimate witness excited me in a way I had never felt before.

For the next few moments we remained in stasis the only movement the slight bobbing of her head as she continued to lick as best she could. At some point I caught a hint of my own scent and briefly wondered how it must be for Evelyn trapped in the stifling thickness of it.

Catching me unawares Madelaine reached out and I felt the delicate play of her fingertips on my engorged nipples but I was now single mindedly concentrating on the climax that I could feel building inside thrumming out to the tips of my fingers and toes.

My sex began to deliquesce and Evelyn gave a sorrowful whimper as she was subjected to a rain of tainted saliva but I totally disregarded her as the Viscountess now seemed to be attending to me with less reluctance.

A single stab of her tongue was enough to find a deep lodgement and, for the second time, I thrilled at the unique feeling of a woman's touch. She still had the awkwardness of an ingénue but there was an unconscious understanding of what was necessary to heighten my pleasure.

Madelaine laughed quietly as we puppets played out her game but I was long past the point of no return.

I revelled in the delightful feeling of her rooted tongue for a few moments longer but I was in need of more. Without ceremony, and ignoring a startled shriek, I settled fully on Evelyn's face. In so doing my sex opened just a little more releasing her to find focus at the very apex.

I had never been so aware of my clitoris. At that moment it felt like the centre of my being. She licked blindly, uncertainly, but it was enough. I bucked unheedingly on the face beneath me as I encouraged her to increase her tempo and then I keened a drawn out howl as my orgasm ripped through me only to roll back and re-echo leaving me shaking uncontrollably.

I could not say how long it lasted but I was drawn back into the real world by the gentle stroking of my hair. I opened my eyes to find Madelaine smiling at me and easing me back from a near suffocating Evelyn.