Gemma’s speculations ended as she felt cool fingers begin to undo the buckled straps holding her single glove. She lifted her head, then squealed in sudden agony as a crop burned a thin line of red heat across her right thigh.
“Keep your head lowered, girl!” a harsh voice ordered, “You were not given permission to move.”
Her thigh throbbed with heat, but she knew better than to disobey and thrust her head back down, biting hard on her gag lest any sound she might make be interpreted as a protest and earn her another cruel punishment. The straps came free and the hands moved to the laces of her single glove, loosening their implacable grip on her arms until the leather could be peeled from her flesh. Numbed after their long confinement, Gemma’s arms had no strength in them and she could n
