Madeleine stepped up next to Sergei while he held Madame Naumov down. He lacked subtlety, plain and simple, but as long as he restrained from giving her an occasional bruise, it would have to do. She gave him a warning raise of her eyebrow, a reminder of just who their package was, and more importantly, who their employer was.<br/><br/>The rope was a very fine weave, only slightly bigger than the width of a clothesline, and a flexible mix of nylon and cotton designed to hug curves and contours, but, oddly as it sounded, be comfortable against the skin. Though deceptively thin, when coiled and wrapped many times, it may as well have be steel. It worked around the Madame’s wrists easily, holding them together tightly behind her back. The wrists were the most important part; without the arms, a captive’s ability to fight back would be greatly reduced, though they were far from helpless.<br/><br/>She worked a lark’s head around her wrists, wrapping the rope several times around before cinching it around the binding, then knotted it tightly where her fingers couldn’t even graze it, then fetched another bundle and repeated the treatment to her elbows, cinching both of her arms tightly together with the white rope. Both ties made neat, but tight little cuffs that lay flush against her skin.<br/><br/>While she might have been gentler than Sergei about it, Madeleine wouldn’t have minded a feel of Madame Naumov. The black spandex leotard and matching tights might have been a simple workout attire, but her bare arms and the form fitting clothing only highlighted her elegant features further. There would be time for that later; Maksim wouldn’t mind some simple caresses on their transit back to Russia.<br/><br/>With her arms securely bound behind her, Madeleine returned to her purse, and took out two more objects: a roll of Ace bandages and a large, round sponge.<br/><br/>“Stand her up,” she told Sergei, returning to his side. “As much as I would like to trust you to not scream for help, Madame Naumov, I’m afraid we simply can’t take that chance.” When Sergei pulled her back upright and standing, she lifted the sponge before her lips. “Open your mouth.”