Chapter 15

While Matty and Sharon handed out slices of cake to the guests, I aimed another plastic forkful of cake at Scott’s mouth. I held it there for a moment while Jessica snapped another picture. Scott reached out with a finger to wipe a bit of excess frosting from my lip; I caught his hand and sucked on his finger for a moment, giggling.

I found my eyes turning toward the stage again. It was getting harder to tear my attention away, and harder to ignore the feeling between my legs. My sanitary napkin was wet and starting to rub against me ... No, I told myself, not yet, not yet. This is Scott’s time.

Scott gave me my last bite of cake; I started to look at the stage again, but he caught my eyes. It was almost as if he had reached out for them and grabbed them. He was smiling. “You want to get ready, don’t you?”

I couldn’t speak. How rude, to tell him I wanted to leave him.

He leaned forward and kissed me — a long, soft, tender kiss. Not a goodbye kiss. That would come later. He broke the kiss and took my hand, squeezing it. His eyes just inches from mine, he whispered, “Go. It’s your time now.”

I looked at him, wondering how he could come so close to reading my concern and addressing it. I opened my mouth, and he beat me to it, for once. “I love you.”

I giggled, feeling bubbles of release bursting inside me. “And I love you.” I put my hand behind his head and kissed him again. “One thing I just thought of,” I added.

“For you, love, anything.”

“When you send me to the lab ask them to use cells from my neck. Right under this lock of Susan’s hair, if they can. Is that okay?”

“One hundred and one percent!” He smiled at me. “I’ll be sure to tell them to do it.” Scott pulled his phone out of his pocket and tapped a few keys, making a note to himself.

I turned quickly, and got the attention of Jana, Melissa, and Runner. As I caught each one’s eye, I pointed toward the guesthouse. Andrew was standing next to Runner. Runner whispered something to him, gave him a pat on the bottom, and headed off to get ready.

I started to follow them, then spotted Father walking by with a drink in each hand. I turned as he went past, and saw him hand one to Steffi. She took it without blinking, so they must have already been talking. I hadn’t noticed. Steffi said something I didn’t hear, and Dad laughed — not something I’d seen very often.

And on that positive note, I am out of here.

I walked to the guesthouse without attracting much attention. The few people who did notice me got a smile and a finger wave.

I arrived at the guesthouse and Melissa immediately began helping me out of the suit. Runner said to Jana, “You should pick out where you want to go, and we could put some ropes there beforehand so she can tie you up if she wants to...”

Melissa spoke up. “Just make sure there’s some bushes close by so I can watch from there.”

I was rehearsing my hanging moves in my head, and having a hard time concentrating on the outside world. But at last I registered the conversation and slowly concluded I did not know what the hell they were talking about. I looked at Jana. “What?”

Jana giggled. “Oh! Well, we had a really fun time with Scott’s friends, and Runner said maybe we should do your sailor friends too. While the dancing and all that is going on, after your hanging.”

Runner nodded. “I never got to be with Justin. He just would want straight sex, wouldn’t he, Amy?”

I smiled at him. “Yeah, you’ve been his boyfriend for years. And do a lot of stroking and kissing. He’ll like that. What was this about the ropes?”

Jana answered, “Runner said I should be with Bailor, because she’d want to really take control. Melissa’s going to do Jimmy first, and then — you heard this part — she’ll watch from the bushes while I’m with Bailor. I’m not reading anything dangerous in her, just that she’s kind of aggressive. But it never hurts to be safe.”

I nodded. My first instinct was to encourage caution in a situation less controlled than an Academy party, but Melissa was going to keep an eye out. With Scott and an entire wedding party within earshot, I didn’t see cause for worry.

Whoops! I remembered from earlier. “There might be a problem, guys.”

“What is it?” Melissa asked.

“Rochelle and Jimmy are engaged. They might not think sex with an outsider is appropriate now.”

Jana looked disappointed. But Runner smiled. “We can ask, right?”

“Right,” I answered.

“So we’ll talk to them. Maybe they’ll be willing to let us do something for them, even if it’s not full-on sex.”

I laughed. Runner was awfully hard to discourage. “Sure, go for it. The worst is they’ll say, ‘No.’”

I shrugged out of the dress, handed them it Melissa, and pointed to my bag. “Jana, could you get the spray? And the glitter’s in there, too. Melissa, let me look closer at that dress.”

I took the dress back from Melissa, and examined it on the inside, more closely than before. It was designed to be ripped away easily. The front and back halves overlapped slightly, held together by a small loop of thread every few inches; down the sleeves, too. I’d been careful not to bend over before now. I bit my lip, and said to Melissa, “We need to test this somehow.”

Melissa pointed. “Let’s rip open that stitch at the bottom, on the right side. That’s expendable.”

I nodded and handed her that part of the dress. “You do it: you and Scott are going to be doing it for real later. See how much effort it takes.”

Melissa, her lips pressed together, pulled at the fabric on either side of the stitch. In a moment it gave way. She nodded and draped the dress over a chair. “It wasn’t as hard as it probably looked. I was trying to make sure I didn’t rip any more of them than that. We’ll have to give it a pretty good yank, but it’s no big deal.” She looked behind her. “Do you have ... Oh, good.” She took a spray can from Jana.

I pulled down my panties, and inspected the pad I’d put in there. It was wet, but not yet soaked through. I was dripping pretty steadily by now. “These are really a mess, hon. I don’t know if you even want to bother taking them back with you.”

Melissa laughed. “I’ll give them to Scott. He’ll probably want them as is.”

I smiled at her. “Oh, would you? Thank you.”

Runner stood holding his sponge. “What do we do, Amy?”

“Just soak a sponge in the oil and rub it on my body.”

“We’ll show you how,” Melissa said. “We had a class in that at the start of the Third Year.”

Jana nodded. “We’ll all check each other when we’re done to make sure we don’t miss any spots — underarms, between her legs, everything.”

Runner’s eyes went wide. “Oh! This is how they make the students shiny before they hang!”

I nodded. “Right.” I stood with my legs apart, my arms away from my sides. Jana knelt first and began oiling my feet; Melissa started on my upper legs. Runner watched the others briefly, then started oiling my shoulders.

I closed my eyes and sighed, blanking my thoughts of hanging for the moment and giving in to the pure sensation.

I had never felt closer to Miranda. I had known her for such a very brief time, and almost my only physical contact with her had been spraying and brushing her body. I felt the circle of a NooseMeister’s life completing itself, from my birth on the day I’d met Miranda, to this day I had aimed for ever since.

I gasped and giggled as Melissa brushed glitter between my buttocks, at the same moment Runner was approaching my crotch from the front and above.

My friends finished and spent some time looking closely, and I smiled as I wondered whether my naked body had ever had quite this much visual attention. At last they looked at each other, and Melissa turned to me. “All done.”

I pointed to the dress. “See if you can get that on me so it does as little sliding across my skin as possible.”

After some discussion, Jana and Melissa turned the dress nearly inside out, rolling up the sleeves, then together they put it around my body, unrolled it down my body and arms, then buttoned the back.

I hugged Jana, kissed her and said, “Have a great life and a great hanging. With your feet tied.” Jana smiled and promised she would.

I hugged Melissa next. “Make the Warren family proud. Again. And tell Melanie about me when she gets here.” I kissed her, and she brushed a tear away.

“I will.”

I turned finally to Runner, and held both my hands. “You’ve come such a long way since I met you. And I don’t just mean from the island. I couldn’t be here without you today, and I thank you so, so, so much.” I drew Runner closer for a hug, and whispered, “Always love everybody. Always be happy. And always be the best NooseMeister you can be.” I kissed him.

Runner’s eyes were glowing, and I wondered whether it was a reflection of my own eyes or something contained in his own. “I will, Amy. I love you.”

In a choked voice, I said, “I love you, Runner.”

I let him go, stood back, and closed my eyes a moment, breathing deeply. I let the joy, the excitement, the eager anticipation, burst forth into my conscious mind again. “Okay, here’s how I want us to go out...”

For the second time, Melissa, Jana, and Runner emerged from the guesthouse, together this time, holding hands. Runner held a small coil of rope.

About ten feet out from the door, they paused until they were noticed — one of Benjamin’s friends saw them, and the word spread through the crowd. I came out as soon as I heard the crowd hush, and closed the guesthouse door behind me. I chuckled briefly: closing the door was symbolic of leaving my life behind. At this point I could probably find some symbolism in pretty much anything.

I took a deep breath of the day’s fresh air, and fixed my eyes on the stage. I spared only a little attention to my friends walking ten feet ahead. As before, applause spread through the crowd, in pockets at first and then everybody joined in.

Bill and Karl took up positions on the stage on either side of the hanging platform, several paces behind it. Bill flipped a switch on the device that generated interference with any local electronic devices, the usual precaution against any images of the hanging being recorded. Both bodyguards then stood with their hands folded in front of them, as still as statues except for the movements of their eyes, scanning the crowd.

Scott now mounted the steps to the stage and stood beside the platform, beaming with pride.

My friends broke their formation as they reached the steps. Melissa stepped up to the stage first, then Jana, then Runner. They stood on the opposite side of the platform from Scott, with Melissa nearest.

As I approached, I picked out the people I had invited. The crew of the ship were standing together, of course. I smiled; none of them knew what my friends had planned for them during the post-hanging party.

More surprisingly, Father was still standing with Steffi. Good, that cuts down on the number of different directions I’ll have to face.

Matty and Sharon, their duties done for the moment, stood together with their arms around each other’s waists. Sharon whispered something in Matty’s ear; Matty nodded, his eyes going from me to the stage. I suspected they were planning to ask Benjamin to hang them together when their time came.

I beamed at Dean Porter, giving him a thumbs-up signal. He smiled and nodded in return.

I fixed my eyes on the noose once more. I’d thought I was as excited as I could possibly be, but I was getting even more excited as I walked up each step to the stage.

Once on the stage, I approached Scott’s open arms, and felt them enfold me. I sought out his lips for another kiss.

He let go of me, and I walked around him to stop behind the platform. There was a sword lying on the stage back here. I smiled. Father didn’t yet know that Scott was going to ask him remove my head. That was the same privilege Dad had given to Kevin Warren, Miranda’s father, so long ago.

The circle keeps closing in so many ways.

I saw the noose again, swaying in the wind. I closed my eyes briefly, then opened them again to look at it again. In less than an hour, the body of a NooseMeister will be dangling there — me!

I faced the crowd again, and felt my connection with them grow stronger. It’s exactly the way I always pictured it! These are the people who will see my show! They’re very excited already. They can’t know how I’m feeling, but they have feelings of their own. Already aroused, some of them, already uncomfortable with growing erections or moistening panties, the ones who have some idea what to expect.

Miranda! my inner voice shouted silently, triumphantly. I’m here!

I stood still, my eyes sweeping across the gathered audience. Scott had told me he wanted to speak first.

Scott held up his hand, and the applause quieted, conversations were hushed.

“And now...” Scott said, and for the moment the quiet seemed to extend even to the birds chirping in the trees. He paused and went on. “my wife tells she has a little show she’d like to put on for you.”

The silence was shattered by whoops of laughter and renewed applause.

I stepped up onto the platform, my smile so broad it almost hurt. I felt the noose brush my shoulder, and suppressed a moan. I clasped my hands together in front of me, to keep them from visibly shaking with my excitement. Just let me get nooseborne, and I’ll be perfectly calm.

I swept my gaze over the crowd. “Most of you probably know the usual thing is to perform a little skit before the hanging. We’re not going to do that today, for a lot of reasons. One is, we couldn’t work in any rehearsal time, because Scott and I have been, ummm, kind of busy for the last twenty-four hours or so.” I laughed, and the audience laughed along with me.

I went on, “The biggest reason, though, is I don’t want a piece of fiction to take away from the ... realness, of today, my wedding day. I never thought I’d love anybody the way I love Scott, right now.” I looked down at Scott, and saw him mouth “I love you.” I mouthed the same back to him, and returned my attention to the crowd.

“When I was going through the Academy, I never knew exactly what the circumstances would be, for my hanging. I knew I’d be excited, no matter what. But I never imagined being so happy. So many people I love are here right now. Scott — Daddy — Steffi — Dean Porter — Justin — Rochelle — Jimmy — Melissa — Jana — Runner — Benjamin ... I love you so much I want to give you everything, and what makes me happy is that I can do that. Those of you I just met today, I love you too. Either Scott or Benjamin invited you, so you’re special to them, and that makes you special to me too. I’ll give you everything I’ve learned in the last four years, and then I’ll give you my luck, so I can always be with you.” I grinned. “So let’s start on that right now.”

I looked down and gave a little hand gesture to Scott and Melissa. They jumped up beside me on the platform, and the crowd grew very quiet once more. I put my hand behind Scott’s head and gave him a long kiss. He let his hand drift casually up to the neckline of my dress. I whispered, “Goodbye, honey. Thank you so much. I love you.”

He whispered back, “I love you too. Always.”

I felt Melissa’s fingers curl around the top of my dress, against my back. Scott locked eyes with Melissa, and nodded. Melissa whispered, “One, two, three...” and they both pulled. The front and back halves of my bodice separated as the uppermost stitches gave way. They took a firm hold, and both of them jumped away, off the platform.

The last of the dress tore away, and I stood alone, naked and glowing in the sunlight. The wide-eyed crowd gave a single collective gasp. At every hanging, this sudden moment was always a big part of the drama, giving the witnesses just a small hint of the powerfully erotic vision to come. I put my hands behind me, arching my back, standing proudly with my feet apart.

Runner and Jana jumped onto the stage. Runner looped the rope around my wrists. He had wanted an active role so badly that I’d relented from my earlier determination that he should only watch. Jana unobtrusively checked Runner’s knot and nodded. Runner finished tying off my crotch rope, and again Jana checked it and nodded...

I kissed Jana, told her “I love you,” and she told me the same. Then I turned to Runner. Runner’s eyes were blazing now, and I wished I could tell an astronomer that I understood what caused a star to go nova — some inhabitant of a planet circling the star, my theory went, radiated so much excitement, like Runner was doing now, that it made the star explode. I kissed him and said, “Thank you for saving me. I love you.”

Runner put his arms around me, and touched his cheek to mine. At last he said, “I love you, Amy. Thank you for bringing me here.” He and Jana jumped down from the platform, then sat on the stage a few feet away.

Melissa stepped up once more, took hold of the noose, and lowered it over my head, tightening it around my neck. Any of my three friends could have done this, but I’d wanted Miranda’s sister to have the privilege. With the knot placed and adjusted, I kissed Melissa, and said, “I love you. Tell Miranda all about it tonight.” Melissa promised she would and jumped down from the platform, leaving me standing alone once more.

I evened out my breathing; Melissa would signal Scott when it was time. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Scott pull the lever. The platform began sinking.

I cleared all thoughts from my head, and chanted in my mind, NooseMeister, NooseMeister, NooseMeister...

The rope around my neck tightened and lifted me. My feet came free of the world, never to return to it in this life.

A sensation of power, of being in control of the emotions of all of the people around me, came over me. It was as intense as my last pair-hanging with Grant. Now it’s just me. They all came to see me.

Along with the power was the feeling of floating, a familiar friend I had known since that first hanging class. I had felt it thousands of times. I had hanged for over twenty minutes in practice sessions. I had watched 41 terminal hangings, and every one had been an incredible turn on. But this was different. This was my hanging.

Images were flooding my mind, all simultaneous. Of Grant, showing me and our classmates those special moves of his for the first time, in that first hanging class. Of Susan, trying her best with only a month of formal training. A lock of her cropped hair was now pressed against my neck, where it would feel the last beats of my heart. Of Larry, looking like Zeke Hillcrest, kicking and squirming in the noose and helping Steffi conquer the anger that had clung to her for so many years. Of Runner, hanging for the first time, entering a world he had never imagined. Of Holden and Hamish, hanging together, expressing a connection to each other that went far beyond mere love. And behind all of the images, surrounding them and unifying them, the image of Miranda, her dying performance seen by a directionless high school girl whose life was changed forever.

I was two people at the same time. I was Amy Cameron, NooseMeister, who knew as much about hanging as anybody living. And at the same time ... I was a subling, and my husband and I had jointly decided it was time for me to be converted. I wasn’t a slave: This was my choice: to give him the best hanging I could. And this was also his gift to me, Amy Cameron, NooseMeister: freedom, a night of wedded bliss, and a unique ending that suited me perfectly. So here I was, hanging, with a noose around my neck: the noose that would strangle me to a gloriously orgasmic death.

My kicking was no longer the way I found my rhythm for the rest of the performance. I felt like somebody who was going to be hanged by the neck until dead. The squeezing sensation of the noose — painful, but also so sensual, so sexy! The need for air starting to come on me. I felt this way even though, in reality, my kicking and head movements were getting me all the air I needed this early in the hanging. Not my internal senses, but the audience reaction, it all felt as if it was my own body sense.

I am all NooseMeisters who have ever died for their art. All of their blood flows through me, and mine through them.

I began thrusting my legs out, wrapping them around an imaginary lover. and I felt a man’s legs — Grant’s legs — between mine as we made love. No wonder the audience gasped loudly. I noticed several hands drifting toward their owner’s crotches. I would have done the same except that my hands were tied. Open mouths, wide eyes. When I’d had as much as I could take right then, I changed. I wriggled, my legs stretching downward for the support that was, for me, forever out of reach. I felt that panicky need for air. Not an overriding panic that would have wrecked the experience for me, but the need to survive just a little longer, to get to where I needed to be — even though I didn’t yet know where that was.