The museum was located in an old castle which created the right atmosphere for the exhibition of old torture instruments and death methods. Massive stone walls, damp air, and in the mostly small, but high ceilinged rooms every device known to humanity that has been invented for putting people to death or inflict awful wounds and great pain.

I go there every now and then as for me as an author of historic (and other!) plots this environment is always stimulating - not only for my fantasy as you can imagine. If possible I prefere the early Sunday as there is not many visitors, so I can leasurely stroll around and stay longer at single exhibits, developping scenes in my mind.
Being an author means to create and relish at the same time, doesn't it?

Leaning at a wall and looking at an Iron Maiden, I tried to imagine what it felt like to be encased in it with lots of metal spikes slowly begin driven all into your body, scraping over your bones, ....
Not my most preferred method of dying, I have to admit (oh, yes, I have preferred methods of dying). Just pain and no personal interaction? Not enough. Then I tried to imagine being the one outside the Iron Maiden, the one pressing the halves together and slowly, oh so slowly perforating the victim.
Still not mine, but at least interaction. Somehow. But you did not see your victim in there. Guess you could hear it the better.

I awoke from my reverie and pulled away from the wall, turning towards the exit of the room - just to stop short in front of four women directly staring at me. One was smiling broadly. "Whom did you force into that spiky box just now?"
I am not easily caught offbalance, so I stared back with a similar smile and answered "Oh, that was you, of course!" That earned me loud laughter from the other three of them and an astonished look from her.
Obviously she did not take offence. She took my arm, hooked hers in and started walking to the exit. We passed her companions who fell in behind us.
"So you like to torture women with some of these devices here?" It sounded more like a statement than a question but was not easy to answer anyway. You see, an author is an exhibitionist and always likes to expose parts of his inner self - to an anonymous public. That is not the same as revealing tabooed fantasies to a stranger.
"Actually I do not do that very often, I have to admit." Just be a bit cautious, will you? I sensed some sort of disappointment in here and added "I write about it more frequently." She turned her had to look at me. "So you are an author, then?"
With that I had the attention of all of them. They surrounded me while we slowly walked the exhibition rooms. I had to tell them about the books I had written, the contexts they were set in, the plots and how I develop characters - and most of all they wanted to know about scenes involving death penalties and torture. They tried not to show too much eagerness; I sensed it nevertheless which made me curious.

I asked them for their names after pointing out that only my name had been told. My companion - the woman hooked into my arm - introduced them to me: she herself was Ardelle, the others where Mira, Delilah and Mincine.
Ardelle was a black haired beauty with outstanding caucasian features. She was clad completely in black: a black sweater of thin wool, a slim jeans of the same colour and matching high block heeled boots going over the knee. Black leather gloves went way above the sweaters sleeves.
Mira was a rather petite, light person with short blonde hair, a small face and very small hands. Face and hands where of a light complexion. She was also wearing a tight fitting black sweater, accompanied by a fashionable skirt that went down to her knees and long black suede boots with a stiletto heel. Even her gate was delicate. She seemed to be somewhat younger than the other three.
Delilah was also blonde, but long haired and the tallest of them all. Contrary to most really tall women she kept herself straight which fitted perfectly her conservative attire: a light brown office costume. Her shoes were high heeled sandals of a maching colour, even the colour of her finger nails was the same.
Mincine was the most colourful of them all, a silent red head with a long dress made of linen patches in several colours and flat boots in dark red - ethno style. A scarf hung loosely from her neck and a rather big bag from her shoulder.
All of them looked classy and well-tended; not showing off wealth, but choosing their clothes with care. �

"And what are four lovely ladies doing on a Sunday in a dungeonic exhibition?"
"We are looking for authors depicting their next kill" laughed Mira.
"We are depicting our next kill" laughed Mincine which earned her sharp glances from at least two others.
"We were bored of homely tea parties and had to look for something else" smiled Ardelle. "What is more distracting then creepy devices?"

We passed the room with the Iron Maiden again, and as if to proove the picture of the bored society chicken seeking excitement Delilah stepped into the Iron Maiden, snuggled against the rear spikes and looked expectantly. The other two took up the bait and fixed her arms and neck with the buckles attached to the inside of the device. Now she would not be able to leave it on her own.
I did not need to look around if someone could catch us with this unseemly doing; there where no museum caretakers here, and other visitors could not be heard.
A short moment of silence came up, all three stared at each other. I looked at Ardelle, but she did not look back. She watched smiling.
Then Mincine took the cover of the Iron Maiden and slowly started swinging it close. The spikes inside the cover moved closer to the fixed body, and Delilah seemed to breath more intense. The shadow of the cover fell over here, she was lost from sight, and then the cover seemed to hit an obstacle - her. It was not completely closed, of course.
Mincine looked shortly at me, then she smiled a wicked smile. She turned her back to the Iron Maiden and leaned against it. A sudden, single intake of breath could be heard. Mincine leaned in stronger. Again Delilah was heard breathing.
Then Mira moved Mincine aside and opened the cover again. Delilah was unharmed, of course, but visibly paler. It must have been an intense experience.
Mira wanted to unstrap the first buckle, but Mincine stopped her. "We could leave her there for a while and go on to other rooms." Mira said nothing. "We could even close the cover again and see if someone else tries to shut it completely."
Delilah had gained her facial colour again and seemed to be calm as before. "You would have to gag me, then, otherwise I scream everbody off." Mincine played with her scarf a moment, then let it fall. Without further words she and Mira unbuckled Delilah and took her by the arms, strolling to the next room. They laughed about something I could not hear clearly.

Ardelle and me walked after them. She looked at me. "Did that excite you?" That was a very direct question, but who am I to ward off interesting turns of events?
"Yes, it did." I could have added things like "But not as much as ... would have", but you need not give more than is asked.
"Same with me." Aahh! Mutually direct, so to speak.
"It is not the first time you visit this exhibition" I ventured. "No!" she admitted and laughed. "But for Mira it is the first time. And for her the basic theme is kind of new."
"And the three of you are accustomed to death and torture?" She laughed again, kissed me quickly on the cheek and said "No, not like you pose it."
You can imagine that my interest leaped quite a bit further.

Before I could decide wether to explore that topic or change to something else we entered a bigger room where Ardelle stopped me after the door. She looked at me and whispered: "Whatever happens now - do not interfere. Promise?" I had no idea what she could talk about, so I nodded.
She fetched a paper from a back pocket of here jeans, unfolded it (I could read "exhibition room closed" computerprinted there) and affixed it to the outside of the door, closed that - and took a key out of her pocket with which she locked the door.
"Was expensive to lend" she muttered as if that would explain anything.
Then she took my arm again, and we followed the others that already had vanished around a corner.

They were standing before a gallows beam, a real wooden gallows with a heavy pole and an equally heavy horizontal beam. A winch was attached to the pole with a rough hemp running up, along the beam and hanging down from there. It ended in a metal ring. No noose.
Mira, Delilah and Mincine stared at it silently as we (also silently) stepped up behind them. Mira crossed her small arms across her chest and mused "I wonder what it is like to helplessly hang from such a gallows." Mincine turned and looked at Ardelle.
"I wonder what it is like to slowly strangle while people are watching." Now Delilah also turned and looked at Ardelle who nodded. Both of them - Mincine and Delilah - slowly turned to Mira, grabbed soft but firm her lower arms and moved them to her back. No one said a word - not even Mira, who perplexedly looked at Delilah, then Mincine. She did not resist.
Ardelle held a black, velvety rope in her gloved hands and began binding Miras lower arms expertly together. Delilah and Mincine still held her and stared both at her face. She stared back, tried to find something in their faces. Found her voice. "What are you doing?"
Ardelle had finished here work. Mira flexed her fingers as her hands where fixed to the lower arms. Ardelle leant forward and whispered in her ear: "You will find out how it feels like to strangle. We will hang you. Now." Miras eyes widenened, she looked at the rope and the metal ring again - and relaxed.
"This is a joke!" She loughed nerveously and at the same time shivered. "You cannot hang me - there is no noose!"

Mincine tapped on her shoulder lightly to make her look at her, her hand went into her big handbag and slowly drew out a black silken rope that was already tied into a hangmans noose. She smiled the same wicked smile, unrolled the noose and took the other end where a snap link was fixed. She lifted it and snapped it onto the metal ring.
"The noose is there" she said teasingly, "and it is soft and waiting to embrace you." Mira wanted to step back, but there Ardelle was standing firmly, and Delilah sill held her arm. Mincine took the other arm again.
Ardelle positioned me directly behind Mira, went around the three of them to the winch, took the handle and slowly lowered the noose.

Mira still was perplexed, enraptured, but the shiver became stronger. "You cannot hang me!" Her voice wavered. Ardelle walked the few steps to her, the noose in her hands now. "Why not? There is nothing you can do about it." She said it quite coldly.
Mincine and Delilah hooked their arms under Miras to better hold her, Mira started to resist and tried moving backwards, stumbled into me and stopped. Ardelle was now directly in front of her and lifted the noose over her head, let it slide slowly down past her face.
"You see? There is nothing left for you now to prevent it." She took the knot with the 13 coils, looked directly into Miras eyes and pointedly closed the noose around her neck.
Mincine and Delilah let Mira go and turned to stand beside Ardelle. The three of them stared at Mira.
"Since I met you I dreamed of hanging you." Mincine said. The wicked smile crept across her looks again.
"And she needed not much to convince me" Delilah added in her quiet, official sounding voice. "You will be a lovely air dancer."
"And I will hoist you." Ardelle told her. Smiling.

Mira shook visibly now.
"Come on!" she panted. "You must not hang me! That would be murder!"
Ardelle nodded slowly. "Yes, it is. Delicious, erotic murder. And no witnesses - so who will blame us?" She did not even look at me for approval, and Mira was so transfixed that she probably had forgotten about me at all.
"You are my friends! This ... this ..." Mira stammered, searching for a reason to spare her.
Mincine furrowed her brows. "We thought about that." Her expression cleared up again. "But you will suffocate so slowly, dance so helplessly, that scene will stay with us for years. It's worth it."

With that, Ardelle turned and walked the few steps to the winch while Delilah and Mincine stepped back to the sides. Ardelle slowly laid her hand on the handle of the winch, closed her gloved fingers around it and began to turn the crank.

Mira started panicking. "No!" she shouted, trying to step back - I had also moved to the side - but the slack was already used up and she was drawn to the gallows by her neck.
Ardelle turned the crank pointedly slow, steadily and watched Mira coming nearer, pulled by her neck. There was no way to resist, in effect the high heeled boots did not enhance Miras footing, so Ardelle had an easy game.
As Mira arrived under the gallows beam the black clothed executioness did not stop. She continued turning until the rope went taut. Mira reflexively tiptoed, Ardelle tightened the noose further until the petite woman started coughing.
"Now there is even no screaming left for you." Ardelle remarked. She grabbed the knot and shoved the smooth material to a better position against the resistance of Miras skin.
Mira shook visibly now and breathed noisily. Here delicate figure was already stretched, standing on her toes must have been a strain.
Ardelle adressed her again. "The knot is a heavy going one, the noose will not close fast. Since you are very lightweighted, your death struggle will last long."
She looked at Delilah and Mincine. "Ladies, let us have our feast of a erotic death."

Then she walked over to me and kissed me on the cheek again. "Do you like it so far?" I had made up my mind quite some time ago. I would not interfere as I promised - this was a very, very rare opportunity. I just grinned and nodded.
Ardelle smiled back. "Thought so." She turned and went to the crank, passing Mira on the way who pivoted to have a look at her. Mira tried to say something, but I did not understand it - and Ardelle did not react to it. Instead, she took the handle and started turning the crank again.

Mira stretched and strained still more, her fingers moving fast behind her back. The noose tightened, the constriction of her air tube intensified, the wheezing sounds grew louder. She started fighting frantically, but there was nothing to fight. Her footing became unstable, she started staggering on the foremost rim of her boot toes, turning involuntarily around.
Ardelle stopped, just held the handle. We all looked at the fighting Mira, taking in the view. Mincine had her hand under her partly pulled up dress, obviously stroking her sex. She even licked her lips. Delilah stand stood there, arms crossed, staring intensely.
The black clothed executioness locked the handle with a turn and came over to me. She reached up for my face and pulled me into an intense, slow french kiss which I relished and prolongued. Feeling her leather gloves at my neck and face added to my building arousal.

She went back to the handle, unlocked it and went on turning the crank. Now the noose tightened dangerously, the sounds became a gurgle, Miras boots left the floor. She reached for it, in vain. Kicked for it, still in vain. Then a sound of pure panic was pressed out of her, a wail mixed with a moan, and she started kicking frantically in every direction, accelerating her circling.
Ardelle locked the handle again and came over to me. We both went nearer to the kicking petite woman (as did Mincine and Delilah). We stood there staring, Ardelle leaning against me, our arms around the others waist.

Miras fighting shifted from panic-stricken kicking to erratic jerking. Her fingers enclosed here lower arms as if she could thus streth better up. The noose had now closed up quite far, the gurgling had stopped, she fought silently. Only the rustle of her clothes and the scratching of the rope against the beam could be heard.

Finally, when she started to slow down, Ardelle looked at the other two. A silent mutual approval, then she went to the winch, unlocked the handle and started lowering Mira back to the floor.

Mira did not realize that she could stand again, she went on jerking wideeyed, hacking her heels onto the floor. Mincine and Delilah took her arms to support her, and Mincine grabbed onehandedly the knot to open the noose. Ardelle went in and took over loosening the rope off Miras neck.
Mira drew in a gigantic breath and nearly started hyperventilating; fast, short breath intakes and hissing exhalation. Her jerking stopped, changed to shivering which only slowly reduced, then subsided. She sweated heavily all over.

Delilah took a syringe out of her handbag, uncapped it and emptied the content of it into Miras thigh muscle. I do not know what it was, but I guess it was meant to help Mira overcome her state.

When Mira calmed down, she suddenly slumped into unconsciousness. None of the three seemed upset about it; Delilah checked her pulse with her fingers anyway.

**********************

All of us where sitting on the floor; Miras appearance was completely out of order. She had been rubbed with a towel to get the sweat off, changed into simple clothes that also came from Mincines and Delilahs bags. And she was pale with deep red patches. And, of course, her neck had a very, very red ring just below the chin.

She was silent for very long, looked one of the others into the eyes, started to say something, fell back, did not say it. Lastely, she croaked the one question: "How did you know?"
A visible relaxation went through the other three.
"Well, remarks here and there" said Ardelle. "Scenes you look at longer" added Delilah. "I found some files on your laptop" grinned Mincine.
"But" Mira fell silent again. "I was not prepared for it."
"You are never really prepared for it." Ardelle returned ernestly. "That's what friends are for!" Mincine cheered which earned her a reprieving look from Ardelle.

"We can understand if you never speak to us again." Ardelle said with an undertone of uneasiness.
"Have you done it only for me?"
There was a longer silence.
"No, honey. We have really enjoyed it. For us this IS a big turn on."
Again a long silence.
"I have to think about all that" Mira mused. "Cannot promise anything" she added somewhat distantly.