Chapter 3: Plans and Progress

Joanne found Annie kneeling behind a rock, looking down at the beach that had been their home. Despite Joanne's silent barefoot approach, the younger girl heard her friend and leader coming up behind her. Annie turned to welcome her with a relieved smile on her usually solemn little face.

"I saw the chopper go over the other day, and I was so afraid they'd find you! You'll never know what I've been through or how glad I am to see you!" she whispered, exchanging a quick, but loving, kiss before both girls settled down to watch the scene below.

With the elder girl's hand across her shoulder and her gentle breath deliciously caressing her cheek, Annie told an attentive Joanne what had been going on since she had arrived here, almost two wakeful days ago.

"They're building a new shelter,. You can see it over there. Just four posts and a roof,, so it won't be too warm for the new prisoners, just shelter from the rain, if they're lucky. You see the cage up there?" She pointed up to the scene of Joanne's first punishment. Joanne saw for the first time that the horizontal arm supporting the cage had been torn from its mooring on the rock, causing the cage itself to fall to the base of the cliff, becoming just a mass of wreckage in the process.

"Well, they're looking at restoring it, but in the meantime, they've thought up a temporary alternative." Annie indicated a row of posts driven into the ground at the far end of the beach. "My guess is that naughty girls like you will be staked out or spread-eagled there, until they get a new cage in place. What would you prefer, Jo?"

"Hard choice!" laughed Joanne. "I guess the cage is worse, and I'm sure that's how the good Inspectors will be thinking. At least you don't get doubled up for weeks on end when you're staked out! Pretty hideous fate, though, either way! How many guests do you think they are catering for, Annie, darling?"

The younger girl went red with pride at having her views consulted. She also rather liked the endearment, having come to fix on Joanne almost the same faithful devotion that she had previously had for Eric, her boyfriend, whom she doubted she would ever see again. Joanne was tall and strong, almost as much so as Eric - and a whole lot cleverer. She was a lot softer to rest herself against, too!

"I doubt it'll be more than two or three, Jo. You can't really imagine too many cowering in that shelter, and they've only provided for two people to be punished at once. Maybe four new girls - but definitely no more."

Joanne nodded her agreement. Disappointing, she thought. The more recruits for their nascent rebellion, the better! After all, they now had the weaponry to equip a battalion!

"Do you know how to use a gun, Annie my sweet?" Joanne's arm on Annie's shoulder slightly tightened its grip, to the little girl's great joy. Annie had been lonely and rather frightened during her long vigil.

She shook her head, feeling her face brush against Joanne's soft fair hair as she did so. The arm relaxed its warm and comforting grip and Joanne let out a sigh of disappointment. "I thought not. Well, you'll have to learn before we leave this island, and learn fast! Poor little Francesca doesn't either, so it looks like I'll have two pupils! Feeling sleepy?"

Annie nodded wearily.

"Well, that's tough, Annie. I'm going back to Francesca. Stay awake till I return. Bye my sweet!"

She gave her a light kiss on the cheek and was gone, leaving the young girl weary and desperate for rest. Despite her tiredness she was very, very proud to know that Joanne trusted her to remain alert and wakeful. She trusted her to continue her lone and dangerous task. Gosh!

Alone again, a yawning but resolutely alert Annie settled herself behind a rock and looked intently down at their former home.

...

"Hi, Francesca! Sorry to leave you alone for so long!"

Francesca smiled happily at the returning Joanne. Like Annie, she did not take too kindly to solitude!

"You've only been gone a few hours, Joanne! How's Annie? And why is she not back? The poor girl must be fit to drop by now!"

Joanne frowned.

"Annie's got to learn to be strong, Francesca! And she must learn fast! We all have to! And now for your instructions!"

Francesca's heart sank as she looked into Joanne's stern eyes. Joanne continued. " I want you to swim out to the wreck and make a full inspection of it - and when I say 'full', I mean 'full!'. I don't expect to see you back before dusk! There simply can't be merely that one measly case of rifles on board. Don't even think about returning until you've pin-pointed where the rest are!"

Joanne watched Francesca swim out to the wreck and went up to the cave and lay down. Her mind was full of speculation about the nature of the new prisoners and when they would arrive. She would need to contact them as early as possible. They had better be good material for the cause! She had her doubts about her present pair of assistants, nice girls though they both were.

Francesca might turn out to be useful, but poor little Annie should never have left home. But these two were all she had for the time being and she must try to lick them both into shape somehow. Tired after her exertions, and still very sore from her ghastly beating, she soon fell asleep.

She awoke after about four or five hours and wandered down to the shore. After some time, she saw Francesca surface near the wreck and then dive back under water, doubtless for the hundredth time! Joanne left her to it and made her way back to the cave. She was inclined to go back for Annie, who must be into her fourth day without sleep by this time, but hardened her heart against her yet again. She curled up on the ground and slept until dawn next day.

When she woke up, Francesca was lying next to her. She left her to continue sleeping and made her way across to Annie, taking food and water for the starving and sleep-deprived girl. The poor little waif looked terrible, her face grey and her eyes red and with dark shadows underneath them. She smiled bravely at Joanne, suppressing an urge to cry with relief.

"OK, Annie. You can have a nap for a while, while I take over, after you tell me any new developments since I was last here!"

"Nothing much new, Joanne. I think they've finished building the shelter. They unloaded a lot of bits of metal and assembled them to make a nice new cage - even smaller than the other. I pity anyone who gets stuck in there! It hasn't been fixed up yet, though."

"If we take over the island, Annie, I might use it do discipline any of you who fall out of line! And don't laugh, my dear! In the struggle we are all in for, there will need to be iron discipline, and it will be enforced by a rod of iron. I'll see to that, and it will if necessary be applied equally harshly to you, friend or no friend! Now get some sleep. You've earned it!"

Annie did not need any encouragement to obey this command and she was soon asleep in Joanne's arms. Her friend and leader once again gently stroked that light brown hair and kissed the sweet and smooth forehead. For the hundredth time, Joanne contemplated the charming innocence of that lovely little face and the daintiness of Annie's figure as she lay stretched out in sweet sleep across her body. What a tragedy that such a darling individual should have such an uncertain and harsh future ahead of her! And it was her, Joanne's, fault that this most quintessentially and totally nice person was mixed up in all this!

If only she had been a little more careful and not kept that incriminating forbidden hoard of literature where it could so easily be found when Annie was paying her a weekend visit. Too late now, though, and she had meant what she had said about making no exceptions for her when it came to discipline. She stroked the younger girl's body once again, feeling those small firm breasts, warm and pulsating under her hand and noticing once again and with renewed surprise how hard and firm that body was beneath its layer of puppy fat - perhaps she wasn't so unfitted for a life of hardship after all!

She let Annie sleep for three hours and then roughly woke her, telling her to remain at her post for another day and night. Annie was about to protest at this, but something in Joanne's expression made her think again. Wearily she continued to watch as the leader went back to see what Francesca had discovered the previous day.