'Who's the chauffeur?' George was looking through binoculars as the chauffeuse left the American limousine parked outside the rented house and walked up to the door. 'She seems familiar!'

'She does look a bit like me, doesn't she?' Lucinda spoke from the back of the hired Range Rover. 'But then she should, as Amanda's my elder sister. Mother gave us both strong personalities, exquisite beauty and lots of red hair. Amongst other things!'

'Lucinda!' George was still looking intently. 'I like the uniform, but she does seem to be mincing rather than walking!'

'She's not very used to the high heels and the corset, I made her wear!'

***

George was driving and the two women were sitting in the back, as they followed the same route as the limo, but well out of any direct visual range. Lucinda now switched on the monitor of the video link, which would give them a discrete and complete view of the passenger and her actions. They watched as she belted herself, pouted into a mirror to check her lipstick and make-up, and then proceeded to open the document case and the enclosed letter.

'She likes the cheque!' Lucinda watched her kiss and place it on the seat. 'Do we all behave like this, when we're by ourselves. Do you and I kiss cheques? Pout our lips? Rub our bottoms back and forth on the seat? Run our hands up and down our stockings? Adjust the suspenders? I don't know!'

'Speak for yourself!' Chris had clamped her hands severely in front of her. 'She's done well hasn't she! You're going to have a fight, Lucinda!'

They saw her pick up the phone, switch it on and off a few times, and make to dial a number. But she didn't complete anything, just placing it alongside. 'She didn't switch it off, did she?'

'Don't worry, Amanda will tell her to switch it on, when the time comes!'

They watched too, as she wrote a letter on the paper, paper-clipped the cheque to it and then sealed it inside the stamped envelope. 'George, you had better stop here, as she's going to post the letter.'

'Yes! Milady!'

***

'There's your problem, Chris!' They were now on the motorway and all around them, were the buildings and entrances, tracks and sidings, and all of the other paraphernalia of the British end of the Channel Tunnel. 'This is about the only thing, you'll ever see of all that money!'

'It doesn't look very impressive! Where's the triumphal arch or some architectural statement of achievement.'

'There's a For Sale sign over there on a tunnelling machine!'

***

As they approached Ashford, Lucinda pointed out the other of Chris' problems. 'See that Eurostar. It's supposed to speed you to and from Paris and Brussels, but we're going faster and its half-empty!'

'Looks good, though!'

***

Lucinda now took her mobile phone, dialled a number and then handed it to Chris. 'You're sure you know how to use one of these?' Chris took it angrily, but she could see George laughing at his wife's technophobia in the driving mirror.

They watched fascinated as the passenger heard the ringing, ignored it and then fumbled with the buttons to get a connection. Chris spoke first. 'Hi! This is Chris. How are you?'

'I'm fine!' They could see her taking deep breaths, twiddling and fiddling with her fingers and hair, and she paused before continuing. 'Perhaps a little nervous. But fine!'

'You've done well.' Chris was being very supportive, whilst Lucinda was having enormous trouble holding a straight face. 'It's all going to be very easy really. Or at least I hope so! I can tell you that all the work, I've done on the legals for the deal at this end, has been a piece of cake!'

'Thanks for all your help by the way. It's nice to talk to you personally at last. Perhaps, we'll all see each other one day!' Lucinda placed her hand in her mouth and bit hard to stop herself laughing.

'There's one more thing to do and you better do it now.' Chris was referring to the blindfold. 'If you reach into the console in front between the two other seats, you'll find one of those virtual reality helmets, a control and some simple instructions.'

They watched as she undid her seat-belt, reached and extracted the helmet, looked at the instructions and tried it on. 'It fits perfectly.' Chris was now realising, why Lucinda had insisted on so many exact measurements. 'It's a bit heavy though! But I'll manage.'

'Good girl! When I hang-up, switch the phone off, plug in and put the helmet on and then click the locks so that it is fixed until someone else releases you. Then use the control to enjoy yourself. I wish you all the luck in the world.'

'Good bye. I'll phone you if I need help.'

'Do that and good bye. I'll leave you with a last thought. I hope it will encourage and sustain you. Years ago, I would have loved to be in your position. But I'm too old now.'

***

They watched as she retrieved the helmet, locked it and then fumbled for and strapped the control to her wrist. 'I'd love to see, what she's actually watching.' Chris thought again. 'Is she actually watching anything? Or is it just a heavy and expensive blindfold?'

'I'll show you!' Lucinda clicked her remote control for the monitor and the view of the helmeted passenger, shrunk to a small square in the top right corner of the screen. The rest was filled with a typical computer menu, which seemed to be responding to unseen clicks and spins.

'So, that's what, she's seeing and hearing! That sounds like her voice?'

'It almost is!' Lucinda was surprised at how quickly Chris had recognised it. 'We made a recording of her voice, analysed it and then any speech fed through some special software sounds just like her. She'll twig it soon enough!'

'How did you make the recording?'

'Illegally!'

They watched as she selected the film and they were treated to the scene, where O, the heroine, is taken to Roissy in the back of a car. 'It's all a bit surreal. She's in a limo, the woman in the film's in an automobile and they're both being taken to an unknown place!'

Lucinda swapped the images, so that the film was now in the corner. 'Look, what she's doing with her hands.'

***

They estimated that their arrival at the house would be about fifteen to twenty minutes in front of the limo, as they had overtaken it on the M25. This would give them barely time to prepare her welcome.

Lucinda had rushed to her computer, which she had already set up in her bedroom and had effectively logged into the virtual reality system, that the passenger was wearing. 'See the film's coming to an end.' She indicated the credits rolling in a window. 'Now you see, why we bought Arazi!' She picked up a headset and microphone, put it on and spoke. 'You're now coming to the end of the journey. In fifteen minutes, you will be arriving, so please collect your belongings and get ready to disembark.'

Chris laughed at Lucinda's implausible instructions.

***

The limo arrived as expected and Amanda came to greet her sister and the two lawyers, who had now been joined by three of the sexual artistes.

'We'll make her wait for a bit!' Lucinda was enjoying herself. 'George can you keep well back! She'll smell you and I don't want her upset or spooked! You've got the video camera ready?'

'Yes ma'am!' George lifted the camera and shot a picture of Lucinda's agitated activity. 'By the way, I had a bath this morning.'

'Yes, quite!' Lucinda put her arm round him. 'Women smell all sweet and nice, and when you've been in one of those helmets for a few hours, smell is all you have left of the outside. She'd smell you a mile off. If you see what I mean?'

Copyright 1999 by Ewart Higgins