The Hunt for Freedom

Chapter Thirty Two

The little maid watched the sun dip below the horizon leaving whisks of pinks and orange swirls in its wake. A distant memory of sunsets with her father rose within her and she pushed it down. Best not to let her mind wander. It would be better to stay vigilant to her immediate problems. She had stayed in the shadows of the entrance, dutifully scrubbing stone. The mindless chore gave her ample time to study her surroundings, such as they were.

In the distance she could see what looked like a group of islands. They appeared green and she imagined them to be dense with trees. If she craned her head far to the right around the jutting edge of the stone she saw what looked like mountains. If there were mountains, there might just be people.

As the day fought and lost to the dark, the little maid noticed the tide rising. What was a sheer plummet for the poor children earlier was now just a mere drop. This would make her secret cave uninhabitable during high tide. She made a mental note to learn how often the tide changed. As she sat planning she didn't notice that she had stopped scrubbing. She was pushed to the floor by another child and scraped her cheek.

Words came out of his mouth but she didn't understand. He pantomimed sleeping and yelled some more. His hands flew as he yelled at her and it was clear getting caught sleeping on the job was as good as a death sentence. Her anger towards the being pushed down turned to gratitude as two scowling men came through the entrance.

They looked left and right, and seeing her, one stomped through the wet to get to her side. She stayed kneeling and tried to look submissive. He shouted something to her; it sounded like the cross between words and a cough. When she didn't respond he pulled her up by her braid and threw her towards the entrance.

"Go, dress, be ready. Essam doesn't like to wait." His English was clear now. The menacing look in his eye sent her running to obey.

She had been hoping that if she stayed scrubbing in the shadows Essam would forget about his earlier warnings and find someone else to take. There were so many children here that surely any one of them would suffice. It was not to be. For whatever reason he wanted her.

She contemplated running for the hidden alcove, and rejected the idea just as fast. Hadn't she just seen the tide rise? Without an avenue for escape she quickly ran in the slave quarters to get dressed. On her threadbare little cot there was a pile of clothes she had never seen before. Apparently if she had to go with Essam he didn't want her dressed like a maid. She hurried into jeans and a sweater, Real boots, miraculously in her size, sat on the floor. Whatever happened this night, she had to find a way to keep these boots. She could almost see herself climbing the cliffs to escape if she could have a pair of boots such as these.

Hurrying down to the kitchen, she hoped to get a few scraps of food before this nightmare began. The kitchen was empty of people, but there were a few dirty plates with food still on them. Ravenously she stuffed her face with everything she saw. She had no idea what she ate, but it didn't matter anymore. Her days of being a picky little princess in her mother's kitchen were distant memories.

With a mouth full of food she began to choke. She frantically looked for anything to drink to wash it all down. She nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw a hand pointing to a pitcher sitting on a stone counter. She guzzled the water then turned back to the hand. It was the same prisoner, awake again and sitting up this time. He had dark hair, matted together, and eyes that showed kindness. She took the last strip of meat and walked over to him. Handing it to him, she wondered if he spoke her language.

"I am Lainey, can you understand me?"

"Yes, I speak English too. Can you bring me some water?" I haven't had a drink in two days."

She hurried to it, lest they should catch her helping a prisoner.

He guzzled the water, his hand shaking.

"Essam is coming for me, if he catches you awake will he hurt you?"

"Yes, they are holding me prisoner and believe that I am drugged. It would go badly if they discovered me awake."

"How long have you been here?" Lainey asked, her eyes filled.

"I don't know, when they took me it was the start of summer. I was drugged for a lot of it."

She thought back to the warm summer nights she had spent with her family. Magic nights with slumber parties, long days at the shore giggling with friends. All that time this boy had been here, locked up. No wonder he looked half starved.

She heard the sound of feet in the distance. She ran to the pitcher and filled the cup once more. He guzzled it quickly as the steps got closer. She had just put the cup on the counter as Essam thundered into the room. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand hoping he would not become suspicious.

He had a spark in his eye that terrified her. He was obviously excited about this evening's events. He looked her up and down and the corners of his mouth curved slyly.

"You will pretend to be my daughter tonight. We will go into town and we will be on a father daughter outing. Do you understand?"

She nodded. Her thoughts raced. Town? That means there were people nearby. She could maybe signal for help. Maybe she could go home.

He must have read the look on her face. "If you try anything, I will go back to your home and kill them all. Am I clear?"

She gulped. She knew he would do it. She would be docile, she had to protect her family. At least she would be able to see what it looked like outside. She would be very careful to notice directions and landmarks.

"Stay here. You will need a bigger coat. What kind of father would I look like if my pretty little daughter was shivering?"

The thought of him as her father made her want to gag. She tried to stifle the urge with thoughts of her real father. She knew she must hide her inner thoughts better if she were to ever escape. As soon as he disappeared in search of a coat, she ran back to the prisoner with more water.

Once again he drained the cup, looking at her with a new respect. "You are a very brave little girl. Be careful tonight, make sure you don't look directly in his eyes. These dragons seem to be able to hypnotize all the girls just by looking at them. If you get the chance to run, do it! Then send help. I have family in Egypt. Look for Katalea Kundam. She will know what to do."

The footsteps were coming back. She had to hurry.

"Ok, what is your name?"

"My name is Dakari, but you can call me Dak"