Miss Villanueva

Her phone had buzzed just that morning, barely five minutes after she'd arrived at work. She recognized the caller ID instantly: Tom Walsh, Senior Vice President, the boss of her boss. "Maria! I need you in here immediately!"

When she entered Tom's office, he didn't waste any time. "Maria, this Baltimore deal is looking shaky. We need to give them our follow-up presentation tomorrow morning, or they're going to go with someone else. Can you fly to Baltimore tonight?" It was a question, but really there was only one answer. Maria agreed, and three hours later she was at the airport with a boarding pass in her hand.

She was excited by the opportunity. For three years, she'd been waiting for them to trust her with something big like this, and if she got this deal through, it would mean an executive promotion for certain. Nothing would go wrong, she would make certain of it.

When Maria reached the front of the security line, the guard looked at her ID. He frowned, studying it for a moment. Then he looked up at her. "Ma'am, can you please go to that security area over there?" He indicated an empty area to her left where another guard sat at a computer.

"My carry-on?" She'd already placed her bag on the conveyor belt.

"We'll bring it over to you."

Maria walked to the guard at the computer, and he asked to see her ID. He typed in the computer for a while and frowned at what he saw. His monitor swiveled, and he turned it so she could see. "I'm sorry, Miss Villanueva. It appears that your name is on our 'no-fly' list." She looked at the screen, and could see her name with a flashing red "no fly" blinking next to it.

Maria felt an edge of panic in her stomach. If she missed her flight and blew the deal... "That's crazy," she told the guard. "No fly? How can that be? I haven't done anything. I really need to get on this flight."

Another guard walked over, a man with short black hair. He looked at the computer screen. The first guard, whose nametag read 'Jason', said, "I'm sorry, Miss Villanueva. It could be that someone with your same name is on the terrorist watch list. We're instructed to restrict you from boarding the plane."

"Can I talk to someone? Please...there must be something I can do?"

Jason turned the monitor back around and typed for a moment, then read something. "According to this, if you consent to a heightened security screening, we can override the restriction. Is that a route you might consider?"

Maria's heart was beating fast. "Yes. Anything. I really need to get on that flight. What do you need me to do?"

Jason reached below the desk and pulled out a form. "Please read this and sign it. It says that you consent to a full body search. Then you'll need to wait an hour for a female security guard to perform the search."

"An hour?!?" Maria exclaimed. "I'll miss my flight!"

Jason looked uneasily at the standing guard, whose nametag read 'Michael.' "I'm sorry, Miss Villanueva... we're short-staffed today, and we only have male guards until 2:30..."

Michael said, "If its okay with you, there's a box on your form that you can check. It says that you waive your right to a same-sex search. If you're willing to do that, we can perform the search and get you on your way in five minutes."

Maria looked at that box, and now her heart was really beating. "You mean, one of you will do the search? Like, what does the search entail?"

Michael said, "It's full body, which means it will require you to get undressed. But you have our assurance we will be completely professional about it. It won't be any different from going to the doctor."

Maria blushed. She had always been rather conservative, and felt very uncomfortable with the idea of taking of her clothes in front of a strange man. But this was an emergency, and she could not afford to miss her flight. She took a deep breath, and then checked the box on her form. "Okay. Let's get this over with."

"If you'll just follow me," said Michael, picking up her carry-on bag. Maria felt her stomach in knots as she walked behind him. He led her to a door in the wall that was labeled "Authorized Personnel Only." The door appeared to be one-way glass, and Maria could see her reflection in it. She looked red and flustered.

Michael unlocked the door and pulled it open, revealing a hallway with three doors on the left-hand side. The hallway reached a dead end after the third door. Michael walked towards the second door and pulled it open. He let Maria enter first.

The room didn't have much in it. Against one wall was a small cabinet, and on the cabinet was a plastic bin. A white screen divided one part of the room from the other. Maria entered and Michael followed her in. He shut the door.

"Miss Villanueva, if you would please step behind the screen and disrobe? You can put your clothes in this bin." The security guard offered her the white plastic bin.

"What's going to happen to my clothes?" Maria asked.

"Jason is going to take them to the screening room and run them through our X-ray machine. He'll bring them right back when he's done."

Maria felt her face getting hot. She walked behind the screen. On the floor was a mirror, with two outlined foot shapes drawn in yellow. The foot marks were several feet apart. Above her head was a silver bar that ran parallel to the wall, like a handrail in a subway. A full-length mirror was on the wall, like in a dressing room.

Nervously, Maria began to disrobe. She unbuttoned her shirt, slid it off and put it in the bin. Next came her skirt - she unzipped it and let it pool at her feet. She stepped out of it and put it in the bin.

Maria shivered in her underwear. She stalled by removing her shoes. Did they expect her to take off her stockings too? She hesitated, then called out to the security guard, "Um... my stockings too?" she asked.

"Everything," the man said firmly.

Maria rolled her stockings down and placed them in the bin. Shaking, she reached behind and undid her bra. It fell into the bin. Next she hooked her fingers into the waistband of her panties, and slid them down her long legs. They went in the bin too, and now she stood, shivering and completely naked.

"Okay..." she said, blushing. "I have all my clothes in the bin."

"All right. Please pass the bin around the screen," Michael commanded. Maria took the bin and carefully set it on the other side of the screen. She heard Michael pick it up.

A knock came at the door, and the door opened. Jason's voice said, "Ready?"

"Yes," Michael answered. "Here you go." Maria could hear the bin containing her clothes being passed to Jason.

"Don't forget we're required to do the bomb screening now," Jason said.

"Shit," Michael swore under his breath, presumably unaware that Maria could hear him. "I did forget."

"I'll be right back with these," Jason said, and the door closed. Maria felt some distress at hearing her clothes get taken away. What if they didn't come back?

But she told herself that this was the worst of it. She would wait behind the screen until her clothes came back, and then she would be on her way. After all, wasn't that what a strip search was? They would check her clothes for anything hidden, but no one really needed to check her. Did they?

She heard Michael talking to her. "Miss Villanueva, now I need you to step onto the mirror and put your feet on the marks. Reach up, and hold onto the overhead bar with both hands."

Maria was flustered. "What do you need to do?" she asked nervously.

"Just a quick body search," Michael said. "I'm sorry, but we're required to do it."

Maria stepped onto the mirror. She put her feet onto the yellow marks on the mirror, which required her to part her legs more than she was comfortable. When she looked down at the mirror, she immediately wished she hadn't. With her legs spread like that, her vagina was clearly visible in the reflection. She supposed that was the point.

She reached up and took hold of the silver bar. Gripping it, she felt horribly exposed. Her body was stretched taut, and her legs were wide apart. She would be embarrassed for a lover to see her in this position - and this wasn't a lover, this was a strange man.

Maria just told herself to endure it. It would be over soon.

"Great," said Michael's voice, and now it came from her side of the screen. Maria looked to the side and blushed. Michael was now standing right beside her. He was holding a flashlight in one hand, and a clipboard in the other. He sat the clipboard down on a small table. It seemed to be holding a checklist, because Maria noticed Michael was continually checking things off as he did them.

The search was thorough, and Maria was horrified at all the places Michael had to check. He looked between her toes, and checked the space behind her knees and the space under her arms. He told her to lift one breast, then the other, while he shone the flashlight underneath them. He carefully ran his hands through her long black hair and checked behind her ears.

He had her reach back and spread her ass cheeks, while he trained the beam of his flashlight on her asshole. She felt humiliated but had to do it. Next he looked up between her legs and flashed the flashlight up her vagina. He had her reach down and pull apart her labia so he could see inside them.

Maria thought he must be close to done. Then she noticed him putting on a plastic glove, and she felt a moment of dread. He reached down and started to explore her publc triangle, carefully sifting through the dark hair she had there. Maria pressed her lips together and tried to hold still. It was a strange sensation, to feel a stranger's fingers exploring her pubic hair.

Michael stood. "I apologize for this," he said, "but I'm required to do a quick cavity search." Maria tensed. Did that mean what she thought?

Michael bent over, and a moment later, Maria felt his finger sliding into her vagina. She let out a gasp, and he paused.

"Are you okay?" he asked. "Do you need a moment?"

"I'm okay," Maria said, although it seemed strange to say this when his finger was still inside her. "Sorry, I know you're just doing your job."

"I'll be done in just a minute," Michael responded. His finger explored the inside of her vagina for a few seconds. Maria didn't know what he possibly thought she could be hiding in there, but the finger was extracted a moment later.

"Can you please reach behind and spread your buttocks?" Michael asked. Maria felt her face grow hot, but she had to do what he said. A moment later, she felt his finger pushing into her asshole. He felt around inside her for a minute, then pulled out. She heard the snap of the glove as he removed it.

"Can I get dressed now?" Maria whispered.

Michael looked down at his clipboard, and for the first time, she sensed some embarrassment in his business-like demeanor. She glanced at the clipboard, and saw there was a section that was devoid of check marks. "Miss Villanueva," Michael began, "we recently had a change of policy, and are now required to do a bomb screening. We use a sensor that detects the residue of explosive chemicals. The sensor is in the room next door, so I'm going to have to take you there now."

"Next door?" Maria echoed. She looked at her reflection in the mirror, and was shocked at the image of herself completely naked standing next to the clothed guard.

"Yes," he said. "I'm afraid I have to apologize. I should have taken you into that room to begin with, but the bomb screening is new and I didn't remember. When we're finished, you'll be given a survey form to fill out. You can indicate there that I made this error. Again, I apologize." Michael stepped to the other side of the screen, and Maria heard the door open. She heard a murmuring conversation, but couldn't make out the words. Then Michael reappeared.

"This is a secured area, and I've told Jason to lock the entry door," Michael said. "I'm going to have to take you into the next room now. The hallway outside is empty and you will have complete privacy while we switch rooms."

"I can't put my clothes on?" Maria asked.

Michael looked uncomfortable. "Well, actually you can get dressed if you want. But according to regulations, if you get dressed in the middle of the strip search, then it negates the search to that point. So I'd have to start over."

Maria was not eager to have his finger probing inside her again. "I guess I'll go like this, then," she said in a small voice. Even though she didn't really have a choice, she still felt like she was doing something dirty.

"Okay," Michael said. "I'll need you to put your hands behind your back. I'm going to temporarily restrain you while I move you between the rooms."

Maria wasn't sure what this meant until she put her hands behind her back. She felt cold steel closing around one wrist, and then the other. Handcuffs. She felt completely helpless. Her hands were bound behind her, and she was completely naked. On top of that, Michael now gently took her shoulder and led her towards the door.

She stepped timidly out into the hallway. Jason was there, standing in front of the glass door. He didn't pay her any special attention, only stood dutifully by the door. This is just their job, Maria tried to tell herself. It's not a big deal to see me naked, they have to do these strip searches all day long . Still, she was acutely aware of how having her hands bound behind her back was causing her breasts to stick out more than usual. Her nipples were hard due to the cold air in the airport.

Michael tried the door but found it to be locked, so Maria had to stand in the hallway while he located his key and unlocked the door. It was unnerving due to the one-way nature of the glass door. She could see people streaming by, and had to keep reminding herself that no one could see her. At one point, a man paused and seemed to be staring right at her. She was distressed until she saw him adjusting his hair, and she realized he was only looking at his own reflection.

Michael finally got the door open, and Maria was grateful to follow him inside.

This second room was the same size as the first, with the same screen blocking one side of the room. She saw a machine on a table to the left of the screen, which she presumed was the sensor he had talked about. It looked somewhat like a fax machine, with a long cord protruding from one side. The cord ended in a long silver tube.

Michael led her behind the screen, and undid the handcuffs. This room had the same mirror on the floor, and the same metal bar. "Please, Miss Villanueva... step on the mirror and hold the bar with your hands, the same position you were in before." Maria did as Michael said.

She could see him in the mirror as he opened a short cabinet and took out something wrapped in plastic. He pulled off the plastic, and held what looked like a cylinder covered in toothbrush bristles. The sensor machine turned out to be on a table with wheels, and Michael wheeled it over next to her. Unwinding the long cord, he took the silver tube at the end and put the bristly cylinder over it. He pushed some buttons on the sensor and it made a whirring noise. Several red lights lit up on the top panel

"I apologize... this may tickle a bit," he told her. Bending down and starting at her feet, he started to run the cylinder over her skin, with the bristles just barely touching her bare flesh. The bristles turned out to be soft, like small hairs, and they did tickle somewhat. Michael was very thorough. He ran the device up one leg, and then went to the other foot and ran up the other leg. He slid it over her back, then over her ass. He moved to her front, and ran the cylinder up her stomach and over each breast. Her nipples felt sensitive and it really tickled when the small hairs went over them. Michael rolled the cylinder across her crotch and over her vagina. Then she had to spread her ass cheeks again while he slid it over her asshole.

"All done," Michael said. "You can relax." Maria let go off the metal bar and stepped off the mirror.

"You can take a seat over here," Michael told her, indicating a plastic chair. "I'll let Jason know that he should bring your clothes. While you're waiting, here's that survey form for you to fill out." He gave her a clipboard with a paper attached to it. Then he went to the door and cracked it slightly. She heard him talking to Jason for a moment. Then he closed the door, and went to the other side of the room, leaning against a table.

Maria read the form. It asked her to rate her experience and the professionalism of the guards. A score of one was bad, and five was good. She grudgingly admitted that Michael and Jason had acted very professional. They had put her in the wrong room at first, but she didn't want them to get into trouble. She circled "5" for each line. She left the comment section at the bottom blank.

Michael noticed she was done. "All ready?" he asked. She gave him the form. They waited another couple minutes for Jason to return with her clothes, and she and Michael made some small talk while they waited. He asked her where she was flying, and how long she was going to be gone. Maria felt weird having a conversation while she was completely naked, but she appreciated that he was trying to make her feel comfortable.

Jason finally stepped into the room with her clothes and her carry-on. Maria took the bin and disappeared behind the screen. She swiftly put her clothes on. Thank goodness that was over!

Finally dressed, she stepped out. "You're free to go, Miss Villaneuva. I apologize for the extra security, and I'll see what I can do about getting your name off the no-fly list," Michael said.

"I can walk you out," Jason offered. He led her back to the glass door, and let her out into the hallway. Maria looked at her watch, and still had plenty of time to catch her plane. She headed towards the gate, trying to forget what she had just endured.

Back in the security room, Jason returned and regarded Michael silently. He started to clap, slowly and deliberately.

"Brilliant," Jason said. "I bow to the master. I can't believe you handcuffed her and walked her through the hallway totally nude, and she still gave you all fives on the questionnaire."

Michael grinned. He looked at the form Maria had filled out, then balled it up and threw it in the trash. "Just wait a few weeks. Pretty soon I'll be leading these chicks naked into the terminal and handcuffing them to the shoeshine chair. Did we get good video?"

"Great," said Jason. "I was watching while you were doing it. The floor cameras got some really good footage. I swear that you made her wet with your 'cavity search'."

"Can't wait to put this one on the master tape. She was a hot one, wasn't she? A hot tamale."

"Hot and spicy," said Jason. They walked to the end of the hallway and through the door, into a room where one wall was covered with monitors. Some of the monitors were hooked to security cameras in the airport, and they could see people walking back and forth. On a big monitor in the middle, Jason was playing back some of the footage of Maria. She was naked and lifting her breast for Michael to look underneath. Karl and Julio sat in front of the monitor, watching the video.

"Nice one, Mike," Karl said as they walked in. "That's one for the greatest hits."

"Thanks." Michael said. Jason sat and joined the two other guards in watching the playback of Maria's strip search, but Michael ignored the images on the screen. He'd watch them at length later, in the editing bay in his basement. For the moment, he was distracted by one of the monitors which showed the area just in front of the ticketing area. A small crowd was standing together, all wearing the same blue shirts. Mostly young people. A college choir trip, perhaps, or a church group. They looked to be in their early twenties, with a few older men and women. Instructors, maybe.