Cindy's Recourse Pt. 03

"P..p..peachy!" Echo replies.

"I certainly hope so." Kacie returns to her upright stance, "How about you prove it by praising these," wiggling her toes against Echo's mouth.

Echo doesn't hesitate for a second to start kissing every inch of them; however, due to her unfamiliarity of the matter, her efforts make for a rather sloppy job.

Kacie calls her out on it. "Hey! Simmer down there you little animal." She hears Gracelyn snickering behind her. "No point in kissing them like it'll get you out of this any quicker," she says pulling her foot from Echo's reach, "instead, kiss them like you love them; massage them with those pretty lips of yours, nice and slow like."

Echo nods in agreement and tries her best to interpret Kacie's instructions. She struggles with the task every few minutes as her target is lifted ever so slowly to the point where she strains her neck to keep good pressure, and gives up with a huff as the back of her head bumps the floor.

"Now this one," Kacie says as she switches feet.

Following a deep inhale to accommodate for the weight shift, Echo detects a slight scent of sweat between Kacie's toes that wasn't there with her other foot. It delays any action briefly until she realizes it's her own sweat, built up from the trample workout she's receiving.

Kacie watches patiently to see why she isn't doing anything. She notes Echo's eyes closing as her toes and the ball of her foot slowly smother her, and the subtle shift of her body from the tenderizing motions of Gracelyn's feet to her stomach.

Feeling a tap on her thigh, Gracelyn looks up at Kacie who in turn nods her head downwards. Noticing the girl seems to be absorbed by what they're doing, they share a smile between each other.

Kacie wiggles her toes again to get Echo's eyes to open, and then takes advantage of her lips being slightly parted to invade her mouth. "Go on, clean them up."

Echo involuntarily moans barely loud enough to hear; it catches everyone of guard, especially her. Something about Kacie's toes playfully wiggling about in her mouth makes Gracelyn's attempts to flatten her stomach hard to resist enjoying. She notices the more effort she puts into sucking them, the more her stomach gives way to its crushing; the strange part about it for her is that she's starting to feel ok with that.

Both girls catch onto her change of heart in their own ways. Kacie feels it in the way Echo's worshiping her foot, and Gracelyn notices the girl's legs bending up to where only her toes are touching the floor, but she's not making noise that suggests that she's in pain.

Without warning, Echo feels the top of Gracelyn's foot slide between her legs, causing her to inhale deeply again and release the toes from her mouth. "No.... no, no...mmm," she whimpers.

Kacie smiles back at Gracelyn, knowing they have this girl right where they want her, and proceeds to keep her silent by returning her first foot to her mouth and cram her toes in.

The sweeter, unsalted taste of these toes compared to the others hinders Echo's desire to fight. They have her distracted enough that she barely notices Gracelyn turning around on her and therefore doesn't put up a struggle; moreover, the sensation of a soft sole rubbing against her now causes her legs to relax.

For a moment, Echo forgets how she got in this position as well as the events leading up to it, but Gracelyn and Kacie don't. They hear the others starting to head up from the garage, and cut their fun short with Gracelyn stepping full weight onto Echo's privates and down between her legs, and Kacie abruptly pulling her toes free, pressing the girl's head to the side, and walking off.

"Not into feet, my ass," Kacie teases Echo with a cute giggle.

Gracelyn laughs at her too as she joins her friend with a walk to the kitchen, leaving Echo in a near-fetal position aside from what her wrist restraints will allow.

"I haven't felt the urge to pound on a guy like that in ages," Ariel cheers as she nears the top of the stairs, "the fact that they are thieves makes it so much easier!"

"Absolutely," Amber says. "It's so different stomping on someone for a crime rather than just pure enjoyment. Speaking of which, Cindy darling, I had no idea you that level of ferocity!"

Cindy doesn't respond to her praise. Her mind is still pummeling the guys, which is resulting in a blank stare as she follows behind her friends.

"Hey," Amber remarks softly to her. She can tell something still isn't quite right by the way Cindy's eyes dart at her, yet appear to be glazed over. Resting her hand on her cheek, "Come on, come back to me here."

"What's wrong with my pin cushion," Kacie asks about Cindy from the kitchen.

"I think she had a little too much fun down there," Ariel replies on her behalf.

"Did she get any answers out of them?" Gracelyn asks.

"I think they were too scared to talk," says Amber, "and it definitely didn't help their case any."

Ariel laughs, "Yeah, it just encouraged a harsher beating!"

"So you did fuck them up after all," Echo calls out from the floor.

Everyone's heads turn to her.

"It wasn't hard," Ariel tells her.

"Well either way, I thank you. That piss ant has needed a beating for a long time now."

Before anyone can form a thought about Echo's words, Cindy takes off towards her, spinning Amber behind her from her grip; leaping over the back of the couch Gracelyn and Kacie were sitting on earlier, and straddles the girl down on her knees along with another choke hold!

Echo's heart sinks and her eyes widen in fright.

"You have NO RIGHT to thank us for anything you little shit," Cindy screams at her. "It is not that fucking hard to be an honest person and live an honest life!"

"Holy shit, what are you talking about?!" Echo wheezes.

"Uh oh," says Amber, sensing danger for the girl.

"Just because I took that collar off doesn't mean I believe a damn word you say!"

"Oh no," Amber says to Ariel as she starts to move towards Cindy.

"The direction you came from had a 'No Trespassing' sign posted! Don't tell me you can't fucking read!"

Echo is already turning red in the face from Cindy's lethal grip. "It was dark! We didn't see any signs!"

She gets blasted in the face with the back of Cindy's hand.

"Cindy!" Ariel yells.

"She's snapped," Gracelyn tells Kacie as she runs towards the mayhem.

Clamping both hands down on Echo's neck, Cindy rages, "I'm done with excuses, bitch! You hear me?! I'M DONE!!"

Gracelyn beats Amber to Cindy by charging at her full steam in an attempt to tackle her, but Cindy's reflexes are too quick and with blind rage she lifts the small girl off her feet with the swing of her arm, flipping her up and over her shoulder. Gracelyn gets enough air from the momentum that she lands, back first, hard against the edge of the couch cushion, striking the firm front side as well, before bouncing back off onto the floor face down.

Cindy barely gets her fist made before she snaps out her rage enough to acknowledge what she just did. Her heart stops when she sees Gracelyn on the floor, but doesn't get a chance to act before she's tackled successfully by Kacie, saving Echo from further harm.

"You're right," Kacie says shaking off the effects of her hit, "you're done."

Cindy is beside herself with confusion from being knocked to her ass by the smallest member of the group. A few hard blinks later, reality sets in. She sits up as much as Kacie will allow her and looks back at Gracelyn who is now guarded by Amber.

"Gracelyn! No!" she cries.

Amber holds her hand out to keep Cindy back.

"My baby, no," breaking into tears and leaning back into Kacie.

"She'll be ok, just relax," Kacie whispers to her.

Ariel deactivates the magnetic restraints and pulls Echo from the equation, helping her get to the furthest couch section possible before summoning it from the floor. "Stay put, I'll get you some water."

Visibly shaking from shock, Echo hardly acknowledges her. The dynamic of the ladies before her boggles her mind. She doesn't know whether to be mad or thankful, but one thing is clear, she's not alone in believing Cindy has lost her mind.

"Here," Ariel says, handing her a cup of water. She almost feels compelled to warn her about sitting tight while she goes and helps the others, but judging by the shakiness of the girl's hands and the fact that she's nearly spilled her water already, Ariel decides that saying anything is unnecessary.

"Let's take her to the guest room," Amber tells Ariel.

"No," Cindy says, "she belongs in the master room."

Amber nods, "Ok."

Gracelyn is lifted into Ariel's arms, and Amber escorts them out of the main area.

Once they are out of sight, Kacie and Cindy get up from the floor and take a seat on the couch, keeping their distance from Echo.

"I know you're heartbroken my love, we all are," Kacie whispers again while leaning on Cindy's shoulder. "It's not fair that they were taken from us, but pounding on everyone in sight isn't going to bring them back."

"The cops will just let them go after they prosecute them," Cindy sobs, "I'm just making sure that they never want to return here."

"I haven't seen what's left of the guys downstairs, but I don't think you need to worry about her."

"Why?"

"Call me crazy, but I think she's alright. Just got tied up with the wrong crowd, ya know? Like how Ariel was a long time ago."

Cindy looks over to Echo who looks away in shame. "I just hate that I'll never know for sure ever again. That reminder of her every time I want to know... I just..." More tears fall. "I'm not strong enough to deal with it anymore."

Kacie cries with her.

Being able to hear the conversation clearly, even for whispers, Echo starts to choke up with tears as well. It doesn't fully justify Cindy's actions towards her, but she does understand the struggle of losing someone close.

"I'll help you through it the best I can," Kacie says with a kiss to Cindy's cheek, "you are my lovely after all."

"Same," Cindy says with a teary smirk.

The two lean their heads together until Ariel returns.

"Are you ready to go chill out for a bit?" she asks Cindy from the hallway.

Cindy nods to her and kisses Kacie back on the cheek, "Thank you sweetie." She then gets to her feet and leaves with Ariel.

Kacie turns her attention to Echo who is staring out the window. She gets up and walks over to her, "Are you ok?"

Clearing her throat, Echo replies, "Yeah."

She continues to stare out the window as Kacie summons an ottoman from the floor in front of her and takes a seat.

Noticing her tears, Kacie asks, "Why are you crying? Is it because of her hit?"

Echo smirks, "Maybe a little, but..." looking down at her water glass, "...did you mean it?"

"Mean what?"

"What you said about me not being so bad?"

Kacie smiles sweetly and guides Echo's glass up to her cheek to aid the bruise that's forming, "Yeah, I meant it."

Echo admires Kacie's careful touch as the two make eye contact. "Can I thank you without getting beat up?"

"Yes, of course," Kacie replies with a short spout of laughter.

"Well then thank you for getting her off me. I can imagine to some extent that you probably didn't want to."

"You're welcome, and if I didn't want to, I wouldn't have done it."

Echo acknowledges with the flick of her eyebrow before looking back to the floor. "You um... you said 'they' over there when you were talking about her partner. Who's 'they'?"

Kacie takes a moment of silence, looking over towards the hallway where the others went, and then back at Echo. "Cindy...and Gracelyn...well, all of us really, but especially those two, lost Christie who you read about, and they also lost their other partner, Brian, that same day."

Echo gets bug-eyed, "Oh my God, both on the same day? Wha...what happened to him?"

Kacie starts to tear up again, "Cindy, um... well, she said when she found them, that... he was positioned in such a way that it seemed as though he was trying to protect her."

"I..." Echo pauses in guilt, "I'm so sorry." Unsure if she should really say anything more, she looks to the floor again.

There is an awkward silence between the two as Kacie relives hearing the details over in her head, making it hard for her to continue to speak. At the same time, she remembers the inspiration Christie gave her to be the lady she is today, and while she feels she still had a lot to learn from her, the best she can do now is embrace her legacy.

With a few deep breaths, she continues the conversation. "I wish you had a chance to know Christie. You wouldn't be in this situation if she were here today."

Echo looks back up to her, "What do you mean?"

With a sniff and a wipe of her eyes, Kacie explains, "She would've known right away if you were lying or not. She would've known why the guys decided to come here, and could've spared them an unnecessary beating by keeping the ladies in check. She could literally do what no one else could; it was her gift, and we all idolized her for it."

Emptiness fills Echo's heart as the details pour in.

"Without her here, they have lost their..." Kacie pauses to find the right word, "...their foundation, their back bone, their source of clarity. Cindy is the worst off because she knew Christie the longest. For the rest of us, we just have the love for each other that Christie helped us build. We stick together for Cindy and Gracelyn because of her."

Echo's eyes drop to her glass, "I...um...I get why Brian would've wanted to protect her. She seemed to be pretty special."

"He was special too," Kacie says trying not to lose her cool too much. "He would've done the same for all of us without a second thought. He gave us his all from day one, and we loved him so much for it. It breaks my heart to know that he was never truly appreciated by anyone outside our group for what he could do."

"At least someone did though."

Hearing Echo say something like that helps Kacie confirm her belief that she's a decent person on a rough path in life. She smiles warmly when the two make eye contact again. For the first time in each other's presence, the tension between them is low.

The room holds a peaceful silence until Amber and Ariel are heard making their way back.

"How are they?" Kacie asks them as they take a seat on the couch.

"They'll be fine," Amber says. "Cindy's mellowed out enough, and Gracie's tough as rocks. Must be that Chicago blood; couldn't get her to sit still once she woke up again."

"Are you staying the night tonight too?" Ariel asks Kacie.

"Of course I am. I think it'll be good for us to reconnect again," she replies as she walks over to them.

"Were we not connected already?" asks Amber.

"Well, we haven't all been together since the service. It feels like we've just been on a hit-and-miss status since then."

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

"We still aren't all here though," Ariel says, "have any of you heard from Elizabeth lately?"

"Oh...yeah, I haven't," Kacie says.

"I don't know what happened to her," Amber says. "I remember Cindy saying she called her and left a voicemail about... um, that day... and didn't hear back."

"Maybe she took it pretty hard too?" Ariel ponders, giving her friends absence some rationale. "I mean, she was usually more comfortable around Christie than any of us, so..."

"Hmm, maybe," Kacie replies. "I hope she's doing ok wherever she is."

"Me too," Amber concurs. "It sucks that things will never be the same, but at least for tonight, we'll have something to rest our feet on," she says with just her finger motioning towards Echo.

"Better her than those pathetic little boys," says Ariel with a smirk.

Kacie laughs softly, "Yeah. I would take it easy on her though."

"Excuse me? Why?"

"Because I just got done talking with her, and I really don't think she meant any harm. Plus she's been pretty cooperative considering everything that's happened." Kacie holds her ground as Ariel looks back in apprehension. "Christie would've given her a chance," she adds.

"Shit," Ariel groans, "you had to go there, didn't you?"

Kacie smiles.

With a sigh, Ariel reluctantly agrees. "They are waiting for you," she says about Cindy and Gracelyn, waiving Kacie off with her hand.

With the little lady heading out of the room, Amber looks to Ariel and says, "She played you like a pro!"

"Shut up!" Ariel retorts as the two laugh.

Kacie hears that loud and clear and tries to keep her laughter to a minimum as she tip toes down the hall. She passes by the guest rooms, assuming Cindy will be in the one with the door cracked open and only makes a mental note of it for now with a plan to return later.

She quietly peaks into the master bedroom and sees Gracelyn sprawled out on the bed; face down with an ice pack on her back. She sneaks over to her and playfully tickles her bare sole, causing Gracelyn to squeal adorably as she pulls her foot away.

"Hey you," Kacie laughs as she hops up on the bed with her.

"Hey," Gracelyn replies with a smile.

"How's your back?"

"It'll be fine. Amber just did this as a preventative measure," referring to the ice pack.

"Cindy feels so bad for this."

"Have you talked to her already? Amber said we were kept in separate rooms so she could cool off."

"I haven't yet, but she was pretty shaken up from what she did out there."

"Well then I wanna go with you when you talk to her. She's been alone too much these past few months and we kinda patched things up last night, so I don't want to lose that progress."

"Yeah, no problem," Kacie says as the lifts up the ice pack to check for bruising. All she sees is a red mark running diagonally from her right shoulder blade to the small of her back from the impact, but no bruises. "How did you two patch things up, if you don't mind my asking?"

"How do you think?" Gracelyn replies with a giggle.

Kacie smiles with her, "Just checking. Did you enjoy yourself?"

"Kinda," Gracelyn says as her smile fades a little, "thing is, after everything that's happened, especially over the past week, I didn't really want to at first. She kinda had to persuade me into it."

"You're kidding," Kacie utters. "You have never needed persuasion! It's always been the other way around!"

"Yeah, I know."

"Well," sliding her hand over Gracelyn's back, "I knew something was up. Normally you would've been on that girl the second those restraints clicked, but yeah, given everything that's happened, I totally understand why you wouldn't be in the mood," Kacie says. "That's why I offered to walk on you, to cheer you up, but I guess that'll have to wait because of your back?"

Gracelyn smiles again as she turns over, "I said my back will be fine. Besides, you've trampled me on this bed before, and it's super fluffy, so no reason why you can't now."

Kacie smiles again, "If you say so. Just a little quickie this time, and then we'll check on Cindy."

She stands up on the bed as Gracelyn turns herself parallel to the headboard. Once she's able to reach the wall over her, she takes hold of a chrome-plated decorative flower stem that is secured to the wall and doubles as a support beam for this very activity.

Gracelyn only has her sports bra on for a top as the shirt she had on came off to benefit the ice pack. Now, Kacie's tiny bare feet act as a different type of cold pack against her skin as she steps up and around on her stomach and chest.

The chill from her toes walking on the tile floor forces a petite moan out of Kacie's adoring tramplee. As her feet sink into her friend's body, she remembers why she liked trampling her on the bed -- it puts emphasis on each step she takes, and even with her light weight, she can still push in enough to cause Gracelyn to fold under her, something that's not possible on the floor.