Susan had been right! As everybody gathered on the patio a few steps above the pool, all the women except for Lizzie, Alex and herself were in black. Even Suzy! Perhaps people just loved being formal. And black was the colour for being formal! Susan was also pleased that everybody seemed to have circulated and groups of two, three and four were chatting and drinking, whilst the triplets served the drinks and distributed the nibbles.

'Would you like some more, Lizzie?' Alex was standing talking to Suzy as Celia approached with a bottle of a very good Chablis. 'Bella has the bubbly if you need more, Suzy!'

'That's a good idea! I'll go and get some!' Suzy strode away. 'Be back in a few ticks!'

'Are you OK?' Alex slipped in the question when they were alone. 'You look so different, with Susan's expert handiwork on your face!'

'Yes, I am! You shouldn't have asked Susan to do that?' Lizzie smiled. 'She must have been very busy! But at least I can hide behind it! I suppose I'm just shy! Suzy's fun!'

'That's better!' Suzy had returned. 'I don't think I'll be able to ride home! But we've got a sleeping bag on the tandem! It'll be nice and warm in here!'

'You came on a tandem!' Lizzie was laughing. 'Oh dear! I just find it so funny!'

***

'Who are we waiting for?' Alex had just joined Susan in the kitchen, as they checked there was enough bottles. 'You're being very secretive about who they are. Do I know them?'

'They'll be here in ten minutes! They just phoned as they left the motorway!' Susan handed her bottle to a newly-arrived Alice. 'When you came through, did you notice if anybody was thirsty?'

'I don't think so! Everybody seemed to be getting on well!'

'I thought that too!' Alex added her thoughts. 'Even Lizzie seemed fine too!'

'I know how she feels about legal dinners and gatherings! I suspect she thought this was going to be another boring one where no-one talked to her!'

'She told me that!' Alex had had her share of boring legal dinners. 'You cheered her up with the make-up. She said it allows her to hide! She was talking to Suzy when I left!'

'You did well to call me!' Susan started for the stairs. 'I'm going to change! Can you come and help me?' She stopped abruptly. 'On second thoughts, can you have a word with the triplets to watch the door before you come up, in case the guests get here first!'

***

'What the hell are you wearing?' Alex was astonished to see Susan standing there in a leather halter neck corset and thong, stockings and thigh length stiletto heeled boots. All were black. 'You look like one of those women!' She emphasised the those!

'A dominatrix! That's the word!' She turned round. 'Can you lace me tightly? I find this corset very difficult as it has no busk at the front and it is rather long. Do it just as I did Jane?'

'She told me you'd be in a corset before the end of the evening!' Alex gathered and started to pull the laces as she had been shown. 'How am I doing? This is not that easy!'

'Don't hurry so much! Take it slowly!' She looked at the laces in the mirror behind her. 'You're doing fine! Keep working from the middle upwards and downwards! Then go back to the waist again!'

'I'm all thumbs! I don't know how you can do this to yourself?' Alex had now closed most of the corset to about a centimetre. 'Is this tight enough?'

'One more go!'

As Alex finished, Susan took the laces and expertly tied them off. 'Can you do the stockings for me? I can't bend over that easily in this!'

Alex was getting more of an expert, as she quickly attached the eight suspenders to the stockings. She stood back and looked at her mother-in-law, who was now much taller. 'That really is something to behold! You look spectacular!'

'I feel it!' Susan giggled. 'Even if a bit precarious!'

'Your waist! And you look like you've got Pamela Anderson's tits!'

'Language! If you're good I'll get you one of these for your birthday! But you'll have to go to Amsterdam for a fitting. That will make a good trip!' Susan put her hands on her hips to emphasise the small size of her waist. 'These ridges and bones make the waist actually look smaller than it really is!' She moved her hands to under the bust. 'There's an awful lot of boning and padding under here! And the halter lifts it all upwards and together!'

'I don't think one would suit me! Even if you're paying and we have a trip to Holland!' Alex was intrigued though. 'It doesn't look very comfortable!'

'It's not too bad until you try and move fast, bend over too far or sit down for a long period! I tend to lean on the furniture when I'm wearing a corset like this!' Susan pointed towards the bed. 'There's also a mask in that pile of leather on the bed! That will complete my outfit!'

Alex sorted through the leather and picked up a pair of black leather knickers, with a red and white L-plate on the back. 'What's this?'

'It's for you if you want to be my apprentice!'

Alex sorted through and found a leather bra and a suspender belt of a similar design to the knickers. 'Do I wear all these?'

'Yes! If you like. And a mask as well!' Susan pointed to the two leather masks left on the bed. 'You wear the smaller one and can you pass me the other! We'll put them on later!' Susan tottered over to a wardrobe and produced a pair of black stockings. 'You'll need these and you know where the shoes are. Choose any pair you like, there's about ten suitable black ones!' She saw that Alex had now removed her bra and was starting to change into the leather. 'Are you sure you want to help me?'

'What do you want me to do?'

***

'That wasn't easy!' Susan laughed and spoke as they struggled to the bottom of the stairs into the hall with a fair degree of difficulty. 'Normally, when I wear these boots, I like to have a strong man about to carry me. It makes it easier on stairs. I can manage the flat with ease!'

'Are the chair and the box in that cupboard?' She indicated a door under the stairs. 'I thought you usually kept Jake's toys there?'

'Yes! I do!' She smiled wickedly. 'But tonight, it contains mine as well. Do you mind?'

Before she could reply the doorbell rang and immediately Tamsin came through from the kitchen. She stopped on seeing Susan and Alex. 'I'll never look at a judge again and think boring! Do you wear that sort of underwear in Court?'

'Only when I have to deal with delinquent young men and women!'

Tamsin ignored the comment. 'Shall I get the door?'

'No! Tamsin! You go and make sure that everybody has enough to drink. Be discrete and don't say what I'm wearing!' She waved to Alex. 'Alex, you can open the door! When all the guests are together and they've got drinks come and find me!' Quickly, she disappeared towards the kitchen as fast as the heels would allow.

Alex opened the door and was very surprised to see the detective. 'Daisy! It's good to see you!' They embraced and exchanged kisses.

'This is Dominic!' Alex embraced a tall, grey and bearded man.

'Come in!' Alex ushered them in and took Daisy's coat to reveal a white corset with everything else to match. 'Susan will like that! Everybody else seems to be in black!' She motioned them to follow. 'You're in one of the bedrooms upstairs!' As she turned she heard Dominic and Daisy laugh. 'What's funny?'

'Your bottom!'

'I know! I'm Susan's apprentice! That was one of her ideas!'

'I thought it might be!' Daisy laughed again. 'She only ever changes for the worse!'

***

After she had introduced Dominic and Daisy to one of the triplets, who would take them to the others, Alex went to look for Susan. She found her in the hall taking the chair from the cupboard.

'Do they suspect anything?' Susan was standing with her hands on the back of what looked like a substantial oak chair with arms and a leather-cushioned seat. Except that padded leather straps were attached to the back, the arms and the front legs. 'Can you get the box out?'

Alex retrieved a solid square wooden box mounted on solid legs to raise it to a convenient height. 'That's heavy! What's in it?'

'Wait!' She put a finger to her mouth.

Alex turned her attention to the chair. 'It's interesting!' She stated the obvious. 'I take it someone gets strapped in! Who's the intended victim? Jane?'

'I told you to wait!' Susan walked to the switches by the entrance to the patio. 'I'm going to switch the spotlight on in a second and I want you to walk in and place the chair exactly under it! Try and be serious as I want this to work!'

'How can I be serious in leather underwear with an L-plate on my bottom!'

'Behave! Or you'll be in the chair! Hang on! Have you got your mask?' Alex ran to the kitchen and returned wearing it. When she indicated she was ready, Susan reached for the light switch. 'Go!'

Alex took the heavy chair and walked deliberately to the bright spot of light on the patio, that at this hour was increasingly red-lit from the reflections of the disappearing sun. To avoid any embarrassment because of her bottom, she bowed to the audience and then retreated slowly backwards. Everybody had now stopped talking and were watching intently.

In the few seconds whilst Alex had been placing the chair, Susan had put on very long leather gloves and she was now carrying a fairly vicious-looking black riding crop. 'Can you put these on?' She handed Alex two pairs of leather cuffs each joined by a short, heavy, highly polished chain from the now open box. 'One is for your ankles and the other is for your wrists! Use the padlocks through the buckle when you have them on tight!' She shut the box and locked it with a large brass padlock, placing the long chain holding the key over her neck, so that the key dangled provocatively into her cleavage!

'How do I get out?' Alex strapped one pair of cuffs to her ankles and clicked the padlocks. She tried a few tentative steps. 'Not too bad!'

'You get out when I allow you!' Susan smirked and wickedly licked her lips. 'You should try them in these heels with a very short chain! And perhaps a long hobble skirt! I have a nice one in a very heavy-weight rubber!'

'Oh! Really!' Alex couldn't imagine what that was like. 'No thanks!' Alex put the cuffs on her wrists.

'Can you still manage the padlocks?' Alex was able to click them home and nodded! 'OK! Then go and get my mask and my judge's wig from the kitchen table!' Alex walked off taking only the small steps that the chain would allow.

'Thank you!' Susan put the mask on and placed her full wig carefully over her head. 'Are you still OK?' She dangled a set of small keys in front of Alex. Alex waved them away and nodded. Susan then secreted the keys into the bust of the corset. 'If you need them, ask! And how do I look?'

'Don't worry about me! I'm fine and you're absolutely great! Should you be wearing your glasses as well?' Alex kissed her mother-in-law. 'Shall we go?'

'Not yet! We must be at our best.' She produced a lipstick from somewhere and proceeded to do first her lips and then her daughter-in-law's. 'Are we ready now? No regrets? Just do what I tell you to! You won't get hurt!'

'I'm ready!' Alex did have a few regrets. Mainly about wishing she'd explored her sexuality and her mind earlier. 'You say and I'll follow!'

'Start by following me in with the box! Place it where I tell you and then stand a metre or so behind it, like a magician's assistant. Unless of course I tell you to do something.' Susan flicked the whip in her right hand. 'We're going to enjoy this! Someone won't!'

Copyright 2004 by Ewart Higgins