"Finally, I'm done for the week!" exclaimed Kimber walking back to the salon area. Chase was the only other stylist still there, as both of them had after-hours haircuts scheduled for the day.

Chase had just swept up the last of the hair under her chair, and dumped it in the wastebasket. "I hear you, sister. Steve went camping with his buddies this weekend, so I've got the house to myself. I'm going to take a nice, long bath, pour myself a glass of champagne, and watch a sappy Meg Ryan movie."

"Your husband's out of town, too?" asked Kimber. "Todd went to Springfield to work on some charity homes this weekend. We should have a girls' night out!"

"That could be fun," replied Chase. "I can always goof off tomorrow. Let me help you clean up, and we can try that wine bar that just opened downtown."

"Hell yeah," beamed Kimber, offering a high-five.

Chase returned the high-five, asking "What do you need to do yet?"

"Just take the dirty towels downstairs, put them in the hamper, and bring some fresh ones up. I'll finish sweeping my station, and we should be good to go."

Chase nodded, picked up the laundry, and descended the basement steps. When she reached the basement, she dropped the towels by the washer and went over to the stack of clean towels.

Suddenly, she felt the sensation of cold metal pressed against the back of her neck and heard a loud crack before her world went dark.

Kimber heard a cracking sound followed by a loud thump from downstairs. She walked over to the steps and shouted down, "Chase? Are you okay?"

When there wasn't a reply, Kimber shot down the stairs. Chase was lying on the floor unconscious. Kimber rushed over to check on her. She didn't see any blood or other sign that she'd fallen and hurt herself.

Kimber spotted a shadow moving towards them. Instinctively, she reached into her back pocket and pulled out a pair of scissors and spun towards it, lunging with the scissors. The masked man who had been sneaking up behind her caught her arm in his left hand. Kimber got a glimpse of a tall, thin man with a handkerchief covering his face before the man plunged a stun gun at her neck. Another crackling noise sent Kimber into the darkness as well.

Chase's eyes slowly fluttered open. After the haze cleared, they shot open wide as she saw a lean figure leaning over a mostly-undressed and unconscious Kimber tying her to a support column. She went to move forward, but quickly discovered she had already been bound to a chair herself.

She was further horrified to realize that she, too, had been stripped down to her bra and panties. She pulled against the ropes, but they held fast. She attempted to yell at her captor, but he had apparently stuffed a rag in her mouth and taped it in place to keep her quiet.

Chase's movement and muffled cries caught the man's attention briefly and he looked back at her, muttering "Well, you're awake" before going back to work on Kimber.

Kimber was sitting with her back against the column. Ropes entwined her torso and legs, while the intruder lifted her wrists over her head and behind the column, crossing them and wrapping a rope around them and then around the post. Once he tied the knot, he took a washcloth off the pile of clean laundry, wadded it up, and stuffed it in Kimber's mouth before following it up with several strips of duct tape.

Satisfied Kimber was sufficiently restrained, he lightly slapped the side of her face until her eyes opened as well. He gave her a minute to collect herself and recognize the situation before speaking.

"I don't want to have to use the stun gun on you two, and frankly, I thought you were just going to leave and let me rob this place in peace, but I guess that's how things go. Sorry about stripping you down, but this one here," he said, pointing at Kimber, "pulled a pair of scissors out and tried to stab me, and I didn't know if you two had any more stashed on you. Now, sit here and be quiet, let me take what I want, and no one has to get hurt."

The man trudged up the stairs, leaving Kimber and Chase looking helplessly at each other. Sounds of the man opening drawers and rifling through the file cabinets echoed down the stairwell.

Chase wriggled her wrists looking for any play at all in the ropes, but they had been securely roped in place. Furthermore, the rope tying her hands had been passed through the back of the chair and around her waist, ensuring she couldn't get off the chair. Her ankles had been tied to each of the chair's front legs, so her legs weren't going to be of any use, either.

Meanwhile, Kimber assessed her own situation. While the post wasn't very big around, it was wide enough that with her wrists bound together and to the pole itself, she couldn't maneuver her fingers anywhere near her face. She couldn't figure out where the knot was, either in order to possibly loosen it enough for her to get free or even to remove the gag. She wondered if she could slide up, she could accomplish something, but when she pulled her legs back and tried to push upward, the ropes were too tight to allow her to do so.

Realizing they were essentially trapped, all either woman could do was look at each other sadly and shrug hopelessly at the situation.

After about thirty minutes, the thief walked down the stairs. He walked over to each of them and examined their ropes to make sure they were still secure.

"Well, I got all the cash and everything worthwhile I can carry, so there's no need for me to hang around. However, there's one more thing I want to see before I go."

The man bent down and picked up the scissors Kimber had tried to stab him with earlier. Then he walked over to Chase and clipped the shoulder straps of her bra, allowing her ample breasts to spill forward. Chase's muffled protests made the man smile as he watched her chest wiggle in response.

Kimber shook her head and tried to plead with him, but her straps were also cut, leaving her smaller, yet firmer breasts open for all to see.

"Sometimes I almost wish I was a rapist instead of just a thief," commented the man. "You two are stone-cold hotties, and I wish I could do more than just look. In any case, I noticed your wedding rings, which I already took, in case you're wondering..."

Both women had a moment of shock and anguish as they felt for their respective rings and found them gone.

"...and I'm sure when you're not home in a few, your husbands will come here looking for you, at which point you'll be free to call the police or whatever. So, just hang loose, and hopefully I won't feel the need to come back. Bye!"

Kimber and Chase started whining to no avail as the thief ascended the stairs. Their husbands wouldn't be back until at least Sunday evening, and no one else was expecting to hear from them over the weekend! They began wriggling furiously against the ropes, holding out the faintest hope they'd be able to escape on their own.

The End

Credits

• Cover image created with Canva.

• Captive girl image from Crime and Justice #12, March 1953.