West Valley High Day

"Why are we behind schedule, Missy? Please explain," said the voice in the earpiece in Melissa Mitchell's ear.

The woman took a deep breath and tried to speak. "There was a large transaction by one of your lieutenants. I had to move some money around to cover it so they wouldn't be suspicious."

"That's not a satisfactory answer, Missy," the voice of Marcus Torres replied. "You were supposed to have contingencies for this."

Melissa gasped, "I did. I do. It's a temporary setback." A stream of ice cold water landed on Melissa's neck at that moment, cascading down her bare back and buttocks. The woman screamed as the torrent of water struck her.

The woman was completely naked and sitting on a chair with no back. Her wrists had been handcuffed behind her back and then lifted into the air by a chain, causing her to bend forward at the waist. Her shoulders ached as her arms were bent back behind her. She felt like her shoulders were going to snap at any moment. Her crouched position was amplified by a noose tied tightly around her neck. The rope from the noose was stretched and tied to her upper thighs so any movement of her head choked her. The woman's bare breasts were pressed into her knees. Her ankles dangled uselessly beneath the chair, tied to its underside. Melissa was already sopping wet from several hours of torture before Marcus began his interrogation.

The shower over her head slowed to a trickle as the voice spoke again. "We've had this discussion repeatedly, Missy. Unless all the money is transferred on time, we are all dead. Me, you, your daughter. All of us. I thought these mistakes were behind us."

"Please, Marcus," the woman sputtered. "This amount was very large. If I didn't cover it, they would know the money was missing. I don't know why this money was needed. But it is covered. I swear, we will be fine." The woman was begging for the tortue to stop and Marcus knew she would say anything.

The trickle of cold water continued to fall on Melissa's neck. It was just an annoyance now but it was also a reminder of the torrential downpour her ex-husband Marcus Torres could send down onto her at any time again. He spoke again, "I will deal with individual responsible for the transfer. Large transfers such as that should have been approved by me. You will, however, need to redouble your efforts to get the transfers completed."

"Yes, Marcus. It will be done," Melissa replied. The shower started again, sending icy shockwaves across Melissa's bare flesh one more time. She heard laughing in the earpiece as she shivered in the cold.

"I love the movies," Torres said. Melissa did not understand why her ex-husband said this. "You see, I got this little idea from a movie. Our friend Krutz isn't the only one who knows how to torture a woman." Melissa had no response as the cold water continued to pour over her. The mention of Stephen Krutz' name made Melissa think of her daughter Susan and whatever inhumane punishment she was going through today. Melissa had to complete the money transfers and complete her escape plan if she had any hope of rescuing her daughter from the inhumane abuse she had inadvertently brought down upon her.

A few hundred miles upstate, Susan Mitchell was sitting cross-legged on the floor of her tiny cell eating breakfast when the cell door opened. "Well, we have a little theme going this week," Susan's fellow cheerleader Kylie said as she entered the room. "We might as well keep it going."

Susan just kept her head down and finished off her breakfast. So far this week she had been scrubbed and soaked by her classmates and forced to carry buckets of water through the school. So water bondage must be the theme Kylie was referencing. Susan looked up at Kylie and braced herself for today's torture.

Kylie let out a small chuckle. "Hey, remember a couple years ago when we all did that 'ice bucket challenge' thing? A lot of guys enjoyed our little wet t-shirt contest. I thought maybe we could raise a little money for our cheerleading team by repeating that today."

Susan wondered if Kylie really meant 'we'. She would soon learn her friend did not. Kylie told Susan to get to her feet. She tied a length of rope around the naked girl's neck and pulled on it. Susan followed behind wordlessly as Kylie led her out of the cell and down the hall to the school's atrium. Susan resisted as she realized Kylie planned to lead her out the glass doors into the chilly morning air. But resistance was not possible as the rope tightened around her neck as Kylie yanked on it hard and soon Susan was plodding barefoot down the cold concrete sidewalk.

For the first day of February, the weather was warmer than usual, probably around 50 degrees, but Susan was still shivering as she stepped out onto the dewy grass, maybe out of fear more than the cold air. Kylie led her to a small metal platform in the open green space near the flagpole. Kylie had Susan climb onto a metal grate that raised her a foot off the wet ground. The girl grabbed Susan's wrists and pulled them behind her back, snapping a pair of handcuffs around them. She removed the rope from Susan's neck and used it to bind the woman's ankles together and then looped it through the grate and up to Susan's handcuffed wrists, binding her in place.

Susan saw nine students coming out the front doors of the school. Kylie saw her gaze and spoke. "We had a little fundraiser yesterday. The people who donated the most money get to dump a bucket of ice water over your head. We raised nearly $1500."

"Please, Kylie, don't do this to me," Susan pleaded.

Kylie did not reply to this. Instead she kept explaining Susan's ordeal. "Those home improvement store buckets you see to your right. They were in the freezer in the cafeteria all day yesterday and then sat out here overnight. So that water is going to be around 30 to 35 degrees. I am so glad I am not taking part in this ice bucket challenge."

The first student had come over with the orange bucket in his hand. He sat it down and helped Kylie position a small step stool behind the tied naked girl. The boy climbed the ladder with bucket in hand. Susan lowered her head and braced herself as she felt the bucket above her. Without warning, the boy tipped the bucket and dumped gallons of ice cold water directly onto Susan's head, soaking her. The naked woman who was already shivering from begin naked outside was now shaking violently, her teeth chattering as the cold water dripped down her body.

The next boy took his place on the ladder just minutes later. Susan's tears mixed with cold water as the second bucket was unloaded onto her body. Her blonde hair was matted in her face and she was breathing heavily.

Kylie called for the next students to step up. "We need to hurry this up. I'm only allowed to keep her out here for so long." Two girls stepped up with their buckets. One climbed the ladder while the other stood in front of Susan waiting with her bucket of ice water. She nodded to the girl on the ladder and that girl raised her bucket in the air and sent the cold water cascading down the back of Susan's neck. Simultaneously the girl in front of Susan lifted her bucket with both hands and threw the water directly at Susan's bare breasts. She rocked backward from the impact as the icy water poured down the front of her body.

A boy appeared behind her and grabbed Susan's hair, pulling her head back. A second, taller, boy grabbed his bucket and threw the cold water in it directly into Susan's face and she gasped and choked as the water hit her nose and mouth. Another bucketful of water poured over her head, sending more water down her chest and back.

The boy kept ahold of Susan's hair as the next two buckets of water were dumped over her head. Unable to lower her head, she gulped down more of the cold water. She had never been this cold in her life and she feared hypothermia. She was finding it hard to breathe and every inch of her body was shaking and shivering.

The penultimate bucket was dumped over Susan's head and the nine students surrounded her and watched as the stark naked cheerleader stood dripping wet chained to the platform. Kylie approached with the final bucket and stood next to Susan. "FYI, babe, I was the top contributor to today's fundraiser. You caused me to be abused. So the donation was worth it." Kylie climbed the ladder with the bucket and raised it over Susan's head. A cheer came out from the other students and Kylie poured the water slowly over Susan's head. Finally, she lowered the bucket itself over the bound girl, so it rested on her shoulders, blinding her.

Susan felt her wrists and ankles being untied and someone helped her off the platform. She felt the grass under her feet and then the cold cement again. She was still shivering as the passed through the glass doors into the atrium. Susan was led slowly down the hallway, water dripping off her naked flesh. They reached Susan's tiny cell and Kylie opened the door and shoved her friend inside. The bucket fell off as Susan hit the floor and the door slammed shut.

The young coed lay on the floor for awhile, curled up and crying, trying to get warm. Finally she rose to her feet and made it to the shower. Turning on the water with her hands cuffed behind her was hard, but she finally got the shower to turn on. She got the water as hot as she could and dropped back onto her knees, sobbing heavily.